The Shadow of Hope
by Keshin
Summary: The world is decimated by the androids and Trunks sets out on a mission to find the final component his mother needs to complete the time machine. Meanwhile Android 18 has been going through some changes and seeks to find the answers from the source of her strange feelings. -Set in slightly AU future timeline- A three part short story.
1. Chapter 1

This fic is based on two of my favourite DBZ characters, future Trunks and Android 18. I wrote the ideas and some scenes for this story over 10 years ago and came across it recently after rummaging around on my PC. I thought some of the ideas were interesting and it inspired me to write again.

Note: While it's set in future Trunk's timeline, consider this an alternate timeline fic. Also it's been so long since I watched DBZ I may have forgotten some rules regarding characters' abilities, powers etc. I think I remember most of it, but if you see something that doesn't make sense then that's probably why.

Anyway enough rambling! Please let me know what you think, good or bad or inbetween! Thanks for reading!

.

.

"Speech"

'Thought'

.

.

* * *

.

 **The Shadow of Hope**

.

 _Chapter One_

.

.

.

Bulma jotted down a final item to a printed list of highly specific and complex electrical equipment. The list was entitled "Project Hope" and it was something she, and a few others, had been working on for years now. This last item on the list was especially important, she underlined it with her pen and stood up from her desk and approached her son who was checking his rucksack and gear one last time.

"Do you have everything?" She asked and watched him fiddle with his belt buckle which contained pouches for his rations and survival equipment aswell as a geo-tracking device with already preconfigured map locations of all the potential places where he might find what he's looking for. They, Bulma and a few other capsule corp scientists, had been planning for this particular mission for over a year. In truth the initial part of it was already under way and had been for some time, the survivors and android resistance had already found the majority of the equipment Bulma needed for the Time Machine, however there was one extremely rare and precise component she needed in order to finish it – and that was were Trunks came in.

"Yeah I have everything." He said while tightening the belt at his shoulder. "Did you write it down?" He asked and she nodded and passed him the paper.

"We only just found the factory code identification for it. So the number should match the box it's contained in." She said.

He glanced over the list, he was familiar with the majority of the parts he was searching for having been helping his mother work on the time machine since its conception; however the really technical stuff was way over his head. His time was spent on training, not science and engineering like his mother and grandfather.

"Alright this should be enough." He said and closed his eyes trying to remember the details of his destination by heart, never overly rely on gadgets was something his mentor Gohan had taught him.

"Thirty miles North East of Canton City, the manufacturing plants in the mountain town of Forta Mont." He said, the details of the location coming back to him. He placed the list in his pocket and patted it down as if to make sure it stayed where it was.

Bulma typed a few quick commands into the computer on her desk and brought up a picture of a mountain town with two large buildings in the background. Trunks peered over her shoulder at the image.

"Those plants where some of the only places in the world that manufactured the drive core processors we need. Without them the time machine won't work." She said and rested her chin on her hand in contemplation. They'd done as much research as possible to track down the location of the processors but without eyes on site it was difficult to say exactly what condition the plant was in or what was inside them.

"The old news reports seem to suggest the place is still standing. If they're there I'll be sure to find them mom." He said with a confident smirk, reminiscent of his father.

Bulma glanced up at him and smiled but her face quickly changed to worry. "Trunks promise me you'll be careful. There were reports of android sightings not far from that area barely two weeks ago." She said, her voice full of worry for her son's safety.

"Don't worry so much I'll be fine, they never stick around the same place for too long, and besides you've got too much work to do! Don't waste time worrying about me." He said and glanced over her desk toward the object of all their time and effort. The time machine was currently suspended by a small crane a few metres away from them, its chassis had been removed and was currently displaying all of its innards. They were using an old abandoned airplane hangar which Bulma had carefully converted into a top-range laboratory and workshop, although you couldn't tell that from the outside, it looked partially destroyed and overgrown with moss and grass covering the façade, which was the intended goal.

Trunks took a moment to look at the almost completed machine and couldn't help but feel a mixture of hope and relief. Relief that they could finally do something about the nightmare they were living in instead of constantly running and hiding. It had been so long since they had made any offensive move against the androids, it infuriated him when he thought about it, but more importantly, he was ashamed of himself for not being strong enough to protect those he loved. Pride however was something of a luxury for him now, he knew he didn't stand a chance against them as he was – these were lessons he'd learned the hard way and far too many times at that. In truth he was surprised he was still alive, he never told his mother about the majority of his run-ins with the androids because he knew it would destroy her with worry, and that more than likely she would never let him outside again!

However with this machine they could change things, really change things, and that little speck of hope had gone such a long way to all those involved in the project and to those in the wider fight. Now he had to play his part and he felt he had been working his whole life for it. He was ready.

"You know there's still time, why don't we wait for news on android location before doing this? The resistance are always sending updates; we can wait until they're far away before searching for the parts." She said, her voice partially giving to sorrow.

Trunks turned to face her and placed his strong hands on her shoulders. "Mother I'll be fine. We can't waste anymore time, if I don't go now how many more people will die?" He said, feeling his emotions rise just at the thought. "I have to do this, I've been training for it and now everyone needs me."

Bulma stood up and looked at him, her strong son; her eyes began to fill up. She pulled him into a hug and rested her head on his chest. "Just promise me that you won't do anything stupid. Be careful and stay hidden and keep in contact at all times!" She said, squeezing him tighter. "You're all I have left."

Trunks looked down at her, love and compassion in his eyes, she'd been through so much, he hated seeing her like this. "I will, I promise." He said and embraced her but quickly fell back into that same familiar and brave smirk.

"Hey now I'm not going to fight them, I'm only collecting the parts we need." He said and broke away from her and picked up his bag. Bulma sighed and tried to collect herself while she watched him reach for his sword and attach it to his belt. It took everything out of her to see him leave or go anywhere near possible danger, especially after the loss of Gohan who had been so important in his young adult life considering his father and the Z-Fighters died when he was just a child.

"I'll be home before you know it." He said and after a brief pause, made his way to the hangar exit and waved before stepping outside.

Trunks looked up at the wide blue sky allowing his eyes to adapt to the brightness. It was a lovely day, the sun was bright and warm and he could hear the birds tweeting all around him. From the picturesque scene before him, no one would have a clue about the devastation the world had endured. He took a deep breath and for the first time in a long time felt a genuine sense of purpose. He effortlessly took to the air but stopped suddenly as his mother burst through the hangar door.

"Trunks wait!" She shouted and ran forwards looking up at him. "If you run into trouble or need help make sure you contact me OK?" She cried out with desperation. He smiled and made a peace sign and then took off into the blue sky.

Bulma watched him disappear over the horizon. "Be safe."

.

.

.

.

Seventeen was hovering over the crumbling wreckage of a destroyed building. Below him his sister, Eighteen, was sitting with her legs crossed on a wall of rubble with her chin on her hand looking as bored as ever. They were surrounded by the charred remains of a destroyed and burning city. Billowing clouds of smoke where scattered across the horizon and shimmering in a dim orangey red glow from the fires below. It had been the first city they'd destroyed in a long time, the human presence here however was zero.

Seventeen's eyes were scanning a particular spot of rubble below. "Come to papa…" He said quietly under his breath as he effortlessly worked out the trajectory of the moving target below the concrete slabs. It was there, he knew it, and it was just a matter of timing. Suddenly his eyes darted to the right "Bingo." With an extended index finger Seventeen shot a thin energy beam into the back of a frightened stray dog right before it reached an opening in the twisted water mains pipe beneath a fallen steel frame. The dog let out a whelp as the beam struck its body and its momentum sent it crashing into the wall lifeless. Eighteen rolled her eyes.

"And there it is! Another supreme shot met its mark by the champion!" Seventeen said with a cheer, raising his arms aloft in mock celebration. "He takes the lead again, no one can stop him!" He carried on making crowd cheering noises and praising himself before flying down to her with a grin.

"What's that now? I make it seven to six for me." He said satisfied.

Eighteen groaned, stood up and glared at him. "We agreed animals don't count." She said as she wiped her skirt down from the dust that had been clinging to her clothes all day.

"Anyway I'm getting really bored. Haven't you had enough fun playing with worthless animals?" She asked, annoyed. He crossed his arms and smirked at her. "Hey sis, it's actually more challenging shooting animals. They're not as slow and clumsy as humans."

"Yes but it's pointless, as was coming to this damned city. I told you we wouldn't find any humans." She said pointedly. Seventeen considered her a moment and then cast his eyes across the devastated city which the two of them had laid to ruin. An eerie satisfied grin came to his face. "Yeah but it was fun." He said.

Eighteen flew up beside him and surveyed the city too. Yes it had been fun, there was always a deep thrill to be had from levelling an entire city, or town, or anything really. However it just wasn't the same when humans weren't involved, no matter how many stray animals are scurrying beneath the wreckage.

"Yes well I'm glad you enjoy playing with animals because soon there won't be any humans left." She said and Seventeen's face fell as the thought came over him.

"How many did we find this week? Twelve?" She asked shaking her head while looking around at the city rubble. "Either we've devastated the numbers or they're getting a lot better at hiding." She finished.

"Both." Seventeen replied and put his hand on his hip and raised one in gesture, "I did tell you to go easy on them last year, remember?"

"Me? Hah! It was you who went crazy on them; remember those competitions you made me play with you? 'Let's see who can kill more in thirty minutes'." She said with her best Seventeen impersonation and pointed her finger at him.

Seventeen laughed at the memory and smiled. "Well you played along and… hey, wait a second, you where the reigning champion!" He remembered, now pointing at her. The shame of losing didn't sit well with him, he hated losing at anything.

Eighteen blinked and looked away as the memory hit her too. She struggled to think of a response but swatted his pointed hand away in frustration. "Well that's not important."

Seventeen smirked at her, amused that he could always wind her up, and considering the human entertainment was dwindling, he found himself teasing her more and more often. "You should enjoy them one by one, that way it's more fulfilling and they last longer." He said with a playful grin.

Eighteen groaned and then waved away the gathering smoke that was surrounding her and once again tried wiping the dust from her clothes. She was getting frustrated.

Seventeen ignored her and considered what she had said with more seriousness. "However you did bring up an important point. The humans are getting harder to find." He turned and in contemplation looked back down toward the dead dog. "Maybe we need to change our habits."

"Well whatever we do, we need to get out of here, the smoke's clinging to my clothes and I hate that." She said and brushed her skirt and sleeves down one last time before looking up at him in frustration. "I'm leaving; this ash and smell will be a nightmare to get out of my clothes." She said and took off upward but quickly stopped and turned back to him.

"Are you coming Seventeen?" She asked and after one last quick look across the devastation they had caused, he began following her closely behind.

.

.

They flew for an hour and watched below at the total devastation they had caused during their reign of terror. Some towns and cities that they hit a long time ago where overgrowing with moss and trees and showed no new signs of human activity at all. Eventually they reached the coast and slowly flew over a once extremely busy shipping dock. In the water was the husk of a split-in-half cruiser with both ends sticking out of the water. Beside it in the dry dock were the crumbling remains of an entire oil rig suspended on top of the bent dock cranes. The whole thing was black and charred from signs of a massive explosion and fire.

"Hey sis, remember that?" Seventeen said and pointed down toward it. He grinned remembering the fun he had that day. Eighteen looked down at the ship and smiled, it was a fun day. She was the one who handled the cruiser. She had picked it up and carried it really high as she waited for her brother to send the oil rig down onto the cranes. The whole thing went up in a fireball so big it dwarfed the entire dock. And then for the pièce de résistance she snapped the entire cruiser in two and sent it falling down into the inferno. The humans were incinerated instantly by the heat.

"Yeah that was fun." She said with a grin. The memory of the thrill she had that day sent shivers through her spine. However as her thoughts lingered over the memory, her face gradually changed as she realised days like that were few and far between now, and very possibly would never happen again. The world had changed, a change invoked by their hands. They'd spent years brazenly having fun without care or worry about the future, their future. Their instincts were to destroy humans; it was programmed that way by Dr. Gero. However now that those moments of intense destruction and the numbers of humans had fallen, she was forced to recognise feelings and emotions that once never registered as priorities in her programming. The days of her and her brother's carefree destruction were coming to an end whether they liked it or not. This upset her and she sudden stopped flying and lowered herself down above the cranes. Seventeen came to a stop and turned, noticing the change in her.

"What's up with you?" He said recognising the expression on her face that she only ever showed when she was really bothered by something. He flew closer to her but suddenly hesitated...

"Wait a minute, are you still upset about that clothes store I destroyed? I said I was sorry, I didn't know it was there." He hated when his sister was really mad at him, after that particular incident she didn't speak to him for over a week, she really knew how to hold a grudge. Normally whenever he teased her she would just get angry, sometimes to the point of attacking him, which he enjoyed to a degree. But when he _really_ got to her, she would give him the silent treatment, and he hated that.

She frowned. "No Seventeen it's not that, but I am still upset with you about that!" She said with added seriousness, making sure he still knew her disappointment. She looked down to the dock. "I just realised things are changing, we can't have fun like we used to."

Seventeen looked at her a moment and then realised what she meant, he glanced toward the shipyard. "Hm. Well, we'll just have to find other things to amuse us. Like I already said, you need to find a hobby, something to take your mind off destroying humans."

Eighteen blinked, "A what?"

"A hobby." He reiterated.

"Yes I know what you said I just didn't believe you would say something so ridiculous." She said flatly.

Seventeen studied her face, but then shook his head in annoyance and crossed his arms. "Jeez Eighteen don't you listen to anything I say? We were talking about it only last week!"

She raised an eyebrow not understanding what he was talking about until... "Wait a second." She narrowed her eyes as their conversation came back to her. "You were actually being serious when you said you wanted to learn how to cook?" She said in disbelief, mouth slightly ajar.

"Yes, I find it interesting, and it smells great." He said closing his eyes at the memory of being in that expensive restaurant years ago, holding the place hostage while forcing the chef to cook for him. He marvelled at the man's skill, even while under threat of death… he was beginning to regret killing him now.

Still shocked she raised the obvious question. "But what's the point? You don't need to eat, you're an android." She stated - her face stupefied.

Seventeen rolled his eyes knowing she'd react like this. "The point is I can, and it tastes really good. I've asked you many times to try something in the past but you're so stubborn, so stuck in your ways."

'Here we go again.' Eighteen thought. She had always thought her brother was weird, that he did like to do things she wouldn't entertain for a single moment. It was especially so over the past year when she had caught him watching cooking programs on TV.

"So that's why you were watching those stupid cooking programs." She commented, mostly voicing her own thoughts. To think he was being serious… she shook her head in wonderment at the new height her brother's weirdness had reached. "You're weird Seventeen."

Seventeen frowned at the look his sister was giving him. "Wait, you are calling me weird for what I watch on TV? That's rich coming from the girl who secretly watches those sickening romance movies." He said and her eyes widened and face grew a shade of red. He grinned as he saw the embarrassed look on her face.

"Yeah that's right, I knew you were sneaking off to find videos of that show." Her face became redder. "I didn't see you for three straight days, don't you think I wondered what the hell you were doing?" He pointed.

Eighteen glared at him. "How dare you spy on me!" She accused but was still clearly embarrassed. "Anyway what I do doesn't compare with your obsession with cooking. That's just plain weird." She said trying to get her own back.

Seventeen's smile faded. He hated when she called him that. She was always calling him a wierdo because he enjoyed watching TV and reading books and trying different things beyond just blowing stuff up. He had argued his case many times before and he was getting sick of her attitude.

"So what if I find it interesting. Besides it's a hell of a lot better than waiting for hours while you try on dresses which you don't even like." He said and pointed at her accusingly. "Or put up with you mulling about lazily while I'm trying to have fun and putting a downer on everything I do!" He accused.

Eighteen's eyes widened and brought her hand to her chest in surprise at her brothers sudden outburst. "I never told you to come with me all those times, and your pointless animal shooting games _are_ boring!" She glared angrily.

"My games are boring?" Seventeen feigned shock. However secretly he couldn't help but enjoy the twinge of excitement when his sister got angry and fired up. He needed to alleviate his boredom and this was the perfect opportunity. "Oh yeah you are a bag of fun aren't you. The only time I see you having fun anymore is when that saiyan boy turns up. What's his name, Trunks?" He said and then burst out laughing when he saw his sister's reaction. Seventeen knew he hit the jackpot, he'd noticed her behaviour change over the last year when they ran into that guy.

"Falling for the saiyan! Haha, no wonder you watched those romance shows, you must have been looking for some tips!" He laughed and tried to catch his breath. "No wonder you wanted to keep him alive so much!" He bent over at the waist trying to control his laughter.

Eighteen stammered and her eyes widened. "W-what!? I… I haven't fallen for anyone!" She became furious and began vibrating with energy, her face now bright red. "You agreed we should keep that whelp alive!" She said pointing out the fact.

"Hey now Eighteen don't forget, I'm there when he's around, don't think I haven't noticed when you push me aside just so you can go face to face with him." His words cut through her easily. "Damn sis, you make it so obvious." He finished with a satisfied smirk after seeing each word strike a deeper chord inside of her. He put his hands on his hips in victory.

Eighteen was aghast, she was barely able to keep herself from throwing a megaton of energy at him. "Shut up! Just shut up you idiot! Go away and cook something you wierdo!" She spat.

Seventeen's expression fell and he stopped laughing. That word again, he hated it, well he hated the way she used it. He wondered why it got to him, possibly because she associated it with him doing 'human things' which, as in their programming, tended to evoke feelings of hatred and an appetite for destruction.

It was Eighteen who was smirking now after seeing her words shut him up. Seventeen was about to unleash another tirade against her but instead took a deep breath and controlled himself and crossed his arms.

"Whatever Eighteen, carry on and fall in love with whoever you want. But as much as I'm enjoying our little conversation, I'm going to go do something more interesting." He said and turned around ready to set off, but stopped himself and looked over his shoulder. "But consider what I said, do try and find a hobby because soon things are going to get way more boring and I don't think I could bare arguing with my precious sister every single day." He said and started to fly away but not before launching one last verbal volleyball toward her, he couldn't resist. "So go and have fun with your boyfriend!" He smirked and blasted off toward the ocean before she could retort.

Eighteen was about to fly after him but just about managed to stop herself. She glared wide-eyed at his laughing and disappearing form on the horizon. She lifted her chin in defiance and crossed her arms. "Stupid Seventeen what does he know." She exhaled and tried to calm herself down. Over the past six months they had been arguing more and more and she knew why. The humans were disappearing, well, more like running out. No one likes spending all day every day with their siblings, even humans can't stand it. Seventeen always knew how to get to her and now she needed to let off some steam.

.

.

.

.

Trunks had spent the majority of the day travelling to his first destination which was also where he hoped to find the drive core processors - the most critical component of the time machine. He would have gotten there faster if he had used more power however he didn't want to lure the androids who would likely sense him if they were in the vicinity. It was second nature to compromise on most of life's daily decisions for him now, life under constant threat of death had a way of changing a person's behaviour, and Trunks more than most needed to adhere to this wisdom given what he is and the attention he could gather.

Once he arrived at the mountain town of Forta Mont he performed an initial surveillance of the town, checking for any human presence or potential dangers he could face, and then headed straight for the manufacturing plants north of town toward the mountains. Like the picture he had seen, the site from the outside looked in great condition seeing as it had been abandoned for over a decade now. As he got a bit closer there were the usual signs of looters and human activity including one of the doors of the plant had been cut into. He wasn't too concerned as according to his information, most of the important stuff inside the plant was inaccessible behind heavy security doors and shutters. At least he hoped.

He spent the first hour or so exploring the dingy plant. Water had pooled in from a hole in the roof and flooded parts of the main manufacturing floor. There were also signs of animals using the building as shelter.

He found a power lever and fuse box hidden beneath a metal grate which if worked would provide power to the main hall and upper offices and, more importantly, storage. He pulled the lever and turned to watch across the main floor as the lights struggled to come on. There was a pop and crack and some lights exploded before the fuse blew again and the place went dark.

"Hm, looks like they have back-up generators, guess I'll try a new fuse." He said to himself as he returned to the fuse box. After rummaging around in his belt he replaced some of the old fuses and tried it again. This time he got the results he wanted.

The few lights that were in a good condition flickered on and power to a few machines across the plant floor activated creating a dull buzz throughout the plant.

"Wow, they made this place to last." He said, clearly pleased with himself and took a better look out over the factory below. It was full of advanced manufacturing belts, machinery and processing robotics. He felt more confident that he'd found find what he came for.

He moved through the plant and came to the stairway which led to the upper offices and administration sector. It also contained a large product storage room which was sealed by a security door which reminded him more of a vault. If this place had what he was looking for it would be behind this door. However after playing with the security panel it wouldn't let him in unless he had a passcode and a keycard.

"Heh. Guess my luck just ran out." He said, hoping he'd be able to get in easier after fixing the power to the building.

'Looks like I'll have to do this the old fashioned way, but I'll have to be careful.' He thought as he weighed up the impressive vault like door way. He'd have to power up which was always a risk, if the androids where nearby they may sense him, and lately it seemed they never missed an opportunity to pursue him. He placed his rucksack down and took off his jacket and threw it onto an old wall mounted rail hanger that he assumed must have been used as a winch to carry stock in and out of storage.

"OK nice and easy Trunks." He told himself and began to channel his power and approached the door. He took hold of the sides and tried to pull it apart however it was doubly reinforced steel that was used to protect the company's multi-billion dollar research products. 'Damn… I'll have to use more power.' He dropped his face in concentration and allowed a much greater amount of energy to rise inside as he growled. He grabbed the door again and this time the frame suddenly began to give way to his strength. He twisted and pulled at the massive braced hinges buried deep into the surrounding concrete and steel wired wall structure. The steel frame of the doorway cracked and warped inside the newly formed cavity in the wall structure and severed the large bolts that anchored it to the enclosed room. The structure snapped free easily from his strength and he took a step back and dropped the door to the ground in a massive crash. Immediately he allowed himself to power back down and took a deep breath to settle.

He lifted his head up and hopped over the broken door. It was dark inside so he flicked a switch on the wall to the side and the whole room lit up. It was a product stock room, full to the brim with advanced technology which had been stored away and catalogued by rows and columns of shelves containing all manner of equipment. He beamed with a smile and his heart skipped a beat.

"Oh man, mom would love to see this!" He said to himself as he stepped forward, marvelling at how pristine the place was. Without hesitation he turned and ran to his jacket and pulled out the list his mother had given him and immediately began scanning the shelves of equipment he needed for the required pieces. In reality he knew they could use all of the equipment here but his mission for now was finding the specific items his mother needed, the most importantly being the core processors.

.

.

.

.

Eighteen had been flying aimlessly for about twenty minutes until finally finding a rather secluded mountain town on a large island to the north. She couldn't recall ever being here but after seeing some of the desolation and overgrown shrubbery the town was buried in, she took it as a sign they had been. She wandered around aimlessly going inside the old stores and a few houses hoping she might stumble across a nice dress or some shoes. She was low on shoes, her activities generally meant they didn't last long, and heels combined with her brother's shenanigans didn't quite go hand in hand. But that's not to say she would settle with mediocrity, no she wanted style and she wasn't prepared to give up looking anytime soon.

She found a store that had clearly sold women's high fashion back in the day, but as she entered it had been almost completely ransacked by looters. She frowned.

"Damn humans, they're like rats that ruin everything." She said and moved further inside. She moved to the back and found a few remaining crates and opened them up. There were clothes inside but of inconsistent quality and they looked like they hadn't been touched in decades. She held them up against her body in front of a partially cracked full dress mirror, but most of it was garbage. There was one particular item however, it was a women's blazer and it fit her quite well. She smiled in the mirror and twirled, admiring herself. It was a good piece, a little dated perhaps but she wondered whether she could do something with it. She opened it up to look at the fabric quilting but suddenly froze as two bugs came crawling out between the stitching. Her eyes tripled in size…

"AAAaaaaaahhhh!" She spun and ripped the bug infested blazer off. She shuddered and danced around the store in panic patting herself down and ruffling her hair. She stopped, her chest heaving and glared at the fabric on the floor. A little bug popped out of the fabric and started crawling over toward her. Her eyes widened and exploded in a burst of energy smashed through the shop counter, sending bits of metal framework crashing through the wall, and then flew through the store front and up into the air outside - still shaking and rubbing her hair.

A few moments passed and she began to settle, but she was seething. She turned slowly, her hair a mess and face unhinged. Wild eyes cast down at the store below. When she arrived at the town she was angry about Seventeen teasing her earlier and came here to get away from it, but now this happened…

She felt her body shake in rage induced energy, and now she needed to let loose. She had a mind for blowing the entire town to smithereens after being disappointed by not finding anything and then attacked by bugs. With a growl she flew up higher and hovered above the centre of the town. Her hand began to vibrate with tremendous energy and she raised it above her head, she needed to let loose and this town was simply the last straw, it would know her wrath.

Just as she was about to let it fly she stopped suddenly and her head darted to the right as she felt something, something or someone very familiar to her. It was powerful, very powerful and she turned slowly in its general direction and lowered her hand and let the energy dissipate. Narrowing her eyes she concentrated on its location. There, in the hills in the distance, a large factory on the mountain path. She focussed and could just make out lights coming from the inside.

"It must be…" Her expression changed from anger to a wicked smirk as she realised who it was.

"Just what I needed… it's time I had a little fun."

.

.

Trunks was elated, he'd already found most of the extra items his mother needed, while not critical to the project, they would help tremendously. However more importantly, he'd found a stock pile of the drive core processors she needed. In theory one would be enough if everything went well and there were no mishaps, but having as many as possible would ensure the project was completed. He was overwhelmed, it was the first bit of good news they had for ages and he couldn't wait to see the look on his mother's face when he brought it all home.

He'd stacked boxes of items he needed in a large pile by the doorway next to his rucksack. There were a lot of them, he'd have to find something to carry them all or potentially make two trips. He wasn't finished however as there where a few more items left and the last thing he wanted to do was miss something. He reached up for a box on the top shelf, his fingers stretching, trying to find purchase on it. 'Ah…I cant… quite…' He put his foot on the bottom shelf and stretched up but suddenly the whole rack began to fall back under his weight. "Ah…" He quickly grasped onto the frame but it only made it fall faster. "Uh-oh…" It came crashing down on top of him and a pile of boxes smacked him on the head.

"Oww…" He winced and rubbed his head. "Why didn't I just fly…?" He sighed and pushed the frame off himself and was about to stand up but stopped suddenly - there was a loud bang and it came from the factory floor below.

For a moment he wondered whether it could be some old machinery that came back online when he brought power back to the factory, but then followed the loud scraping of the old creaking door hinges. His eyes widened in panic and he quickly pulled himself up out from below the frame and approached the doorway keeping as quiet as possible so he could hear.

He heard footsteps below and he hoped it was looters or some resistance fighters nearby who had come to check out why the lights came on, but then the entrance door slammed open with a massive crash. 'What the… don't tell me it's...' He gulped and wiped the sweat which had suddenly appeared on his brow. And then, as if only now realising it, he quickly made a better effort of lowering his power level.

With his pulse racing he jumped with cat like dexterity over the twisted debris of the door he smashed earlier and slowly approached the stairway that led down to the plant floor below but suddenly came to a dead stop.

"Helloo~" Said a familiar female voice; a voice that had haunted his dreams for as long as he could remember.

Trunks froze and his eyes widened in fear. 'Oh no… it's them, how did they find me?' His mind raced, trying to think back over his actions since he'd arrived here. It's true he got carried away when he opened the storage room and hit the jack pot and may have forgotten to manage his power as he usually does, but surely that wasn't enough for them to find him? He was at a complete loss until… his eyes landed on the broken door - its massive warped and twisted steel hinges were crushed like twigs after he had raised his power level to get inside. 'You idiot, they must have been close by and felt my presence.' He berated himself.

"Look I know you're here, come out and we can play." Android 18 said from below, her voice was playful and Trunks knew that wasn't a good sign. He turned and quietly stepped into the adjacent office and over toward the windows and peered through. He could see her below, she was dressed in a white t-shirt and tiny black waist jacket and denim skirt and dark leggings. He looked around as much as he could but he couldn't see android 17, however he knew he was around, they were always together. He glanced back at her; she fixed her hair and delicately hopped over a puddle of water looking deceptively as graceful and feminine as a girl possibly could. If he didn't hate her so much he'd consider her beautiful, but this beauty was the walking embodiment of death. He felt his body adrenalin kicking in preparing for a possible fight to the death.

'Right Trunks think.' He told himself and turned around toward the pile of equipment he'd found, the critical pieces to the time machine, the goal of his mission. He couldn't risk fighting here as it could destroy the equipment. No, he had to lead her away.

He peered through the shattered office window again but lost sight of her. Worriedly he moved across the office space and tried his best to locate her on the floor below. He hoped he could slip out the opposite end of the plant and put distance between them. It was nerve wrecking not being able to sense her. Then he heard her footsteps and he peered straight down at the stairway directly below. His eyes widened, she was coming up this way. 'Oh no…' He scrambled back and hesitated as he was torn between hiding himself and wanting to hide the equipment. She was nearly at the top, almost around the corner.

'No time.' He jumped behind a desk that had been toppled over near the back of the large office and unconsciously held his breath.

She came to the top and peered into the office and then took notice of the destroyed large steel door ahead. 'Wow he's been busy.' She thought as she looked around at the strange boxes of mechanical and electronic pieces of equipment on the floor. She peered to the side and saw a piece of paper folded on top of the boxes. She picked it up and opened it. '…a list of components…' She quizzically looked it over and glanced back and forth between the boxes and at the list. 'What is he doing…?' She asked herself with a raised eyebrow but then turned to the side as something caught her attention.

Her eyes lit up as she recognised it immediately, it was Trunks' jacket hanging on the adjacent wall. She gleefully skipped over the boxes and held it up infront of her, her eyes marvelling at the strange Capsule Corp jacket. Then without hesitation she slipped it on, it was of course too large for her but she liked it, for more reasons than one. Grinning she did a twirl and laughed before hugging herself with the jacket and sunk her face into it. It smelled like Trunks.

Trunks was barely breathing behind the desk trying his best to listen to what she was doing, he could feel his heart pumping in his chest. Curiosity got the better of him and he peered around the desk corner and immediately screamed internally.

'Damnit!' He saw her twirling around wearing his jacket. 'Now she knows I'm here for sure, I need to move now.' He scurried silently toward the window, using desks and cabinets as cover, and hoped there was an opening of some kind he could escape from in silence. He was going to flee through an opening but it would meant him running out into the open. He quickly peered at her again but quickly shot back behind his cover. She was standing at the entrance.

Eighteen stepped inside, her eyes scanning the innards of the spacious and ransacked office with a purpose.

"Trunks I know you're in here so why don't you just come out? I want to have a little… chat with you." She said with added playfulness. Trunks gulped and felt his heart beat that little bit faster. She walked around, lifting desks and moving cabinets aside effortlessly, expecting him to be behind each one; she was enjoying the game and finding his jacket had lifted her out of the foul mood she had been in.

"You know it's been some time since we last saw each other. I've been thinking of you lately." She said. Trunks pulled himself together, not really listening to what she was saying. She was getting closer and he knew he had to do something. He looked around desperately for something, anything.

"This is a lovely jacket." She said and did another little twirl, and then she lifted it closer to her face and breathed in deeply. "Mmm, and it smells so nice." She said wrapping it closely around her and giggled. Trunks blinked. He didn't know how to take that but he shook his head and frowned angrily. 'Damn android! She's playing games with me again.' He saw an old ink cartridge on the floor beside him and grabbed it. He turned and glanced around the desk to see where she was and waited for her to turn around completely. 'Come on… come on…' He prepared himself, and then as she had her back to him, he threw the cartridge through the already smashed window out across the plant floor below. It hit the machinery below and made a loud bang that echoed through the factory.

Eighteen spun around instantly and quickly made for the doorway but stopped and turned around, eyes suspiciously scanning the office one last time, but after a few moments she turned and jumped off the upper storey and flew out across the plant floor. Her eyes darted around searching for any sign of movement.

"Damnit." She said under her breath, she was beginning to feel like he was playing with her and she didn't like it. Despite her mood being lifted she was still edgy and in no mood to be played with, today was just one of those days and she still hadn't let out her frustration from earlier. She clenched her fist in frustration - she would have to deal with this using other methods.

"That's it! If you don't come out now I'll blast you out!" She shouted making sure her voice echoed out across the factory.

Trunks face fell. If she blew the factory all of the equipment would be destroyed. His heart raced and he peeked out of the office window at her hovering above. She was clearly angry and he had no reason not to believe she would blow the building.

She hesitated a moment, listening intently for any signs her threat had any effect on him but he clearly wasn't playing dice. She snarled. "You've got five seconds!" She raised her hand and began to gather energy.

"Five!" She started.

Trunks stood up and stared out in fear. 'No, she'll destroy it all.' His mind raced.

"Four!"

He rushed over toward the equipment. He couldn't carry it all, there's too much.

"Three!"

He quickly rummaged through the boxes looking for the drive core processors but aside from the code on the box, they all looked exactly the same. 'Damnit!' He screamed inside.

"Two!" Eighteen's hand crackled with power as she scanned the floor below.

He dropped the boxes and spun around, he had to move. He ran toward the stairway and looked up at her.

"One!" Eighteen raised her arm and then turned suddenly feeling a sudden burst of power.

"Hey android!" He shouted and glared at her, making sure she saw him. He exploded into super saiyan. "Come get me if you can!" He shouted desperately trying to stop her from launching the energy in her hand and immediately he blasted away and smashed through the building ceiling. Eighteen watched him and with a grin set off immediately after him.

Trunks flew straight away from the plant which happened to be toward the valley town below. He glanced over his shoulder and saw her following him at tremendous speed with a wicked grin on her face.

"Oh man..." He said, adrenalin keeping his fear at bay. He swooped low and aimed for the spaces between the buildings.

An invigorated Eighteen watched him with keen eyes, she was much faster than him and could catch him quite easily in a straight chase but this was the perfect opportunity to vent some steam. And she really needed to vent. With a thrilled expression she took the energy she had gathered and threw it low toward him.

Trunks looked over his shoulder as the blazing ball of super energy came right toward him. He tensed and with great effort pulled up away just before it collided with the ground in an enormous explosion.

"Aaagh!" He swayed in the air as the force caught up with him. With everything he had he quickly darted straight for the trees, deciding it best to hide as he knew from experience he couldn't out run her. He powered down as quickly as possible so to remain hidden from her and hoped the chaos of the explosion had hidden his exact presence. He peered out around a rock and tree but immediately shielded his eyes from the brightness of the on-going explosion. 'Oh man, I hope that didn't reach the plant.' He thought.

Eighteen laughed as the intense light from the explosion below cast dancing shadows across her face, the entire town was decimated from the blast. She had felt Trunks fly toward the trees and quickly went after him. She knew he would try to hide, the last few encounters with him he'd been changing tactics after realising he couldn't win in a fight or escape in a chase. Unfortunately his hiding had improved quite a bit and allowed him to escape more than once. Of course the other times she had allowed him to go but only after playing with him which mostly involved chasing him, scaring him and beating him. Today though was going to be different, she wasn't prepared to let him get away.

Trunks waited carefully behind the rock and peered between the trees toward the now flattened town. It was gone and what few structures that were still standing and somewhat intact were now on fire. 'That damn monster!' He gritted his teeth in anger, it was another human town wiped off the map, and he hoped there weren't any humans hiding out here.

As the smoke parted he could see the plant still standing through the heat haze on the mountain side, though it was difficult to tell if it had taken damage. Now however he had to take care of himself. He looked up and around for signs of her but couldn't see anything.

'Right I can't stay here, I've got to keep moving.' He told himself and made for the trees, running swiftly but keeping his power down enough not to be detected. He stopped suddenly and quickly hid behind a tree as he temporarily saw her zoom passed above the trees ahead of him. He peered again but couldn't see her; he knew she'd be nearby. His pulse was racing and his chest heaving from the excursion and panic, he had to change tactic, do something unexpected otherwise he'd fall into her trap. He turned around and headed for the burning town.

"Hi there." She said popping out from behind a tree. Trunks jumped backwards in fright and almost stumbled over but managed to steady himself just in time.

"What's the rush?" She said, flicking a stray strand of blond hair from her face. Trunks instinctively backed up as she paced him, the burning flames of the town surrounded her in shimmering halo of red and orange. He held up his arms in a defensive posture and snarled at her.

"It's been awhile Trunks." She said coming up next to him, her eyes never moving from his.

"Not long enough." He replied straightening up and checking his surroundings for anything at all to help him. He was not favouring his position. He backed up again a large tree and rock but she quickly closed the gap almost making him stumble as his foot hit a rock.

She smiled wickedly and hopped forward right upto him, placing her foot between his legs and her left hand on the tree above his shoulder. She stared into his eyes letting her blonde hair fall across her own pale blue eyes. Trunks stared back at her, back into the pretty face of his nightmares. He clenched as she moved her hand and brought it up toward his chest and chin.

"It's a shame, I was beginning to enjoy our little… encounters." She said playfully. "But then you disappeared again." She moved her face closer to his. "…that's going to change." She whispered seductively.

Trunks couldn't look away from her. He remembered the last encounter they had; she had been acting strangely then too, infact the more he thought about it, she'd been acting this way the last few times he encountered her. It was all games no doubt, she clearly enjoyed playing with him this way, but he was sick of being played with, he felt his anger boil up and just as she brought her fingers to his lips with her eyes studying his face, he swatted her hand away and glared at her.

"Ah." She blinked surprised and then looked him in the eye again. "Now, now Trunks. You know I've been thinking lately, there's no need for us to keep fighting the way we do." She moved her body closer to his, pressing up against him. Trunks' glare faded as his mind raced at her words, he was angry, it came as second nature whenever he saw the androids, but at the same time her change in behaviour really confused him. He didn't know how to deal with it, he knew it was a game, but he just couldn't figure out why she was going so far with it… or why he was still alive in the first place.

She felt him tense and she couldn't help but smile. She narrowed her eyes seductively and moved her face closer, her lips millimetres from touching his. Trunks froze, his mind blank, a complete wreck, he'd never experienced anything like this. He felt her breathing match his, her body was pressed against his and for the first time, despite all of their encounters, he realised he couldn't tell at all that she was an android. She felt, moved and smelled just like a real person, a real girl. His mind screamed, every ounce of training he had in his life told him to react, to move, to turn and get away, but then her lips met his and everything stopped. His eyes widened and his body tensed up. Time seemed to stop and so did Trunks. All that filled his mind was the touch of her soft lips pressed against his, the warmth of her face and body and the slight changes in pressure as she moved her lips against his. He was lost in the feeling; it was something he had never experienced before. But then, like a distant voice in a dream, he heard his minds voice screaming at him, and like a spark-plug igniting a combustion engine, his senses erupted and he instinctively pushed her back, his eyes wide with a mix of pleasure, confusion and horror.

Eighteen opened her eyes in surprise at him suddenly interrupting their kiss but also at what she was experiencing inside. She blinked, trying to come to her own senses and looked back at him. His face was red, a mixture of wonder and embarrassment, a bit like hers she guessed. She smiled at him, and as if reacting to her reaction, his face gradually turned to rage as he started to realise the full extent of what they had just done.

In an explosion of fury he powered up fully while she stood looking at him in wonder, not really concerned about his rage but more lost in the dreamy feeling and marvelled at this sudden new world she couldn't quite identify. It was unlike anything she'd felt before and it seemed to come from this raging, golden haired inferno infront of her. She smiled at him and this only infuriated him more. He jumped to her side and fired a quick, powerful blast at her to give him a chance to escape. She effortlessly swiped it to the side while Trunks burst off through the trees away from her. She watched him fly faster than she had ever seen him, leaving a trail of disintegrating trees in his wake.

Her predatory instincts were telling her to chase him down, however she controlled herself and remained still. She needed a moment to come to terms with what happened. She hadn't planned that, it just spontaneously happened and it made her happy. Yet as she stood basking in the warm feeling, what thrilled her more was that she could tell that something similar had happened to him. She smiled to herself; it was like she had found something completely new and profound, something that she'd always felt was missing and, in her own way, supposed she had always been searching for despite her lust for destruction. It was like a whole new world opened up in her mind, like her programming suddenly wasn't the only thing that made her what she was. Whatever it was she wanted more of it, and what she wants, she always gets.

She looked off toward the horizon were he had last been. She could sense him way off in the distance, super saiyan fully powered, a complete raging inferno. He was long gone now but something came to her mind, he had been here for a reason. She looked back at the plant in the distance and as if suddenly remembering she pulled the piece of paper she had found earlier from the jacket pocket and opened it up again. At the top was the highlighted title 'Project Hope' and below that different categories under the heading 'A list of critical components.' She briefly scanned the page, there were coded objects and electronic items listed in apparent order of importance and quantity. Then at the bottom, hand written and underlined in biro, was the name of a processing core which clearly seemed to be something important.

"I wonder what he's doing." She voiced aloud to herself and glanced back toward the plant, her mind raced, calculating the possibilities. "I guess it's my business to find out all about him." She grinned and took off toward the plant.

.

.

 _To be continued…_

 _._

 _._

* * *

.

.

Thanks for reading!

Let me know if you enjoyed it and if it's worth continuing. I've got a little bit more to do with chapter 2 but it should be up by next week.

Cheers!

Keshin


	2. Chapter 2

Thanks for the reviews and support guys! I completely forgot about the androids not being able to sense power levels. Doh! I felt a little bit deflated after finding out… it would change pretty much everything about the story haha. So apologies about that, I hope it doesn't put too many people off.

As for the direction of the story, it's not my aim to make it completely original but to explore something specific in a super magnified way. Hopefully you'll see what I mean in chapter 3 which will be the last chapter.

I hope you enjoy it.

.

"Speech"

'Thought'

.

.

* * *

.

 **The Shadow of Hope**

.

 _Chapter Two_

.

.

.

Trunks had been flying for hours, for the first twenty minutes or so he was a burning inferno, power unchecked through sheer rage. His anger was aimed at himself and for his weakness in losing the equipment that was so important to him, his mother and everyone. But most of all, he was using his anger to hide his shame at what he felt when she kissed him.

Eventually he gathered enough sense to power down after realising he was telegraphing his presence around the entire planet. She didn't come after him and it left him wondering why. They _always_ came after him unless he was able to hide or they got bored playing with him.

After flying around aimlessly for a while and constantly looking over his shoulder, he eventually recognised where he was. It was a forested mountain valley, isolated by hundreds of miles of wilderness; he once used the area as a training camp with Gohan when he was a child. He flew down closer through the valley and tried to pinpoint the exact location. Eventually he found the river that branched through the valleys from the mountains. They would use it to wash, catch fish and drink from and as a navigation point. It led him straight to a cliff edge above the valley where they had setup a camp.

He hovered over the camp and surveyed it; it was overgrown and would need to be cleared out. He landed and began looking around, he recognised the old Capsule Corp Shelter his mother had made for them and remarkably it was in great condition. He allowed the memories of the time he spent here to come flooding back. Each rock, tree, clearing and the waterfall around the cliff face each held a memory of their time together. He was so young and stupid but so convinced they could win. He remembered Gohans infinite patience and warm smile and constant encouragement. He looked upto him so much, he was a super hero. The things he could do and the stories he told him of the Z-Fighters and their victories, they made him seem invincible. He smiled sadly at the memory and looked down at the overgrown fire-pit they once used and then dejectedly stepped over toward a log and sat down. He put his head in his hands, he felt ridiculous, a complete failure, but more importantly, he felt he had betrayed the memory of his master and all those people he had sworn to protect.

"I'm so sorry Gohan, I let you down." He said and fought back tears. The memory of her kiss was still fresh in his mind no matter how much he tried to push it out. He closed his eyes and all he could see were her seductive eyes looking at him and a warm feeling in his chest. 'Damnit!' He shook his head in despair and stood up trying to straighten himself out. He took a deep breath, he had been wallowing in self-pity the moment he left her standing amidst the trees following their 'encounter.' He had to straighten himself out, he'd been here before, and this defeat was no different than ones he had dealt with previously. It was only the details that were different and details were opportunities to learn from… no matter how shameful, or how embarrassing... his cheeks flushed red as the memory of her warm breath and the touch of her body on his invaded his thoughts. He stood up abruptly and shook his head before letting out a long sigh.

He stepped forward toward the cliff edge and surveyed the entire camp and surrounding area. It was where Gohan taught him the fighting basics, it was isolated enough so that they could let loose to a degree without fear of attracting the androids and also in the knowledge that no human settlements where within a huge radius of the area so no one would get hurt. He smiled at the good memories, it wasn't just the training that these valleys witnessed, it was the bonding shared between two friends. He took a deep breath and tried to remember his mission. He couldn't sit back and wallow in his actions, he had things to do, important things, and people were depending on him.

The sun was setting on the western edge and he knew he only had so much light left to work with, and he needed to clean out the camp if he was going to use it tonight. He shuddered as the cold suddenly crept up on him as if he only now became aware of it. In actuality, it was really cold and he knew it would get colder as soon as the sun set. He rubbed his bare arms, the black vest was all he was wearing. He looked down and remembered that his jacket was gone and was now in the hands of a certain blonde girl. He liked that jacket, it was a one off, his mother made it especially for him and now he doubted he would ever get it back. His eyes widened as he tried to recall what was inside the pockets. '…the list.' He realised and quickly searched his trouser pockets and belt pouches in panic, hoping it might magically appear, but no, nothing. He clenched his eyes and fists tight shut in frustration. "How could I be so foolish!" He told himself off and immediately began to think about his options. Should he return home? He shook his head, quickly cutting that idea out. If he returned home now he would be a failure and his mother would freak out if she found out what had happened, even if he did leave out the exact details.

He groaned but after a few moments he checked what things he did have. He still had his belt attached with some tools, his sword and his capsule rations which was a good foundation to build from.

'Right Trunks, think, start again. I'll spend the night here; I have enough food and water to last ten days or so. I'll return tomorrow and hope she hasn't lingered around or noticed what I was doing. If all's good I'll collect the equipment and return home with them.' He thought, trying to straighten out his mind and keep his eye on the objective. Positivity was pivotal to surviving in these times.

Trunks had cleared the camp out and managed to open the capsule shelter and attach a battery to it which would provide him some heat against the cold of the night. He had lunch with the food and water from his ration belt capsule which opened up refrigerator-like and illuminated the campsite. It wasn't much but it did enough to keep him fed and energised. There was nothing he could do about his smell; he figured he'd take a cold dip into the river at first light and then hopefully his rucksack which contained his spare clothes would be back at the plant where he left it.

He sighed and looked up at the stars and allowed the sounds of the forest to fill his ears. So much had happened, so many setbacks. He knew he had to get past it, push it behind him, to prioritise and think critically about his mission objectives. However in quiet moments like this the memories of all his failures in the past came flooding back. For so long now it seemed like everything he did ended in failure, and each failure came down to the same damn reason – that he wasn't strong enough. Time and time again he'd been beaten, battered and bruised, and each time left its own distinct humiliating mark on him. Whether it was simply to cure their boredom, or this new game she was playing, each time sunk the dagger deeper into his pride, his pride as both a protector of earth and also a man.

He clenched his jaw in anger and closed his eyes. 'Keep going kid.' He heard his mentors voice in his head. He smiled; Gohan was always saying stuff like that and ruffling his lavender hair. Feeling a little better he stood up and entered the small capsule shelter and sealed it up behind him before lying down. Despite the battery power heating up the shelter it was still chilly.

He rested his head on his arm and allowed his heavy eyes to close but immediately, in his minds-eye staring back at him, were two seductive and sultry blue eyes. 'Hi Trunks.' The memory of her filled his senses, he gulped and let out a long sigh and slowly repositioned himself and lay on his side. His lips tingled at the memory of her kiss and he opened his eyes again and groaned, once again repositioning himself. This pattern repeated multiple times before he gave in and merciful sleep came to take him. Tomorrow would be waiting and tomorrow he could put things right.

.

.

.

.

"Nice try kiddo." Gohan said with a cheeky grin and pushed him backward in the air. A young Trunks collected himself and gathered all his reserves for another attack. Going all out he launched himself at his mentor who easily dodged and blocked his attacks. "Not quick enough!" Gohan said and twisted to the side exposing an opening in Trunks attack. With two fists he sent a measured blow to the young boys back sending him crashing down to earth.

Gohan flew down and offered Trunks a hand out of the hole he lay in. Trunks looked at him, shaking the dirt from his mess of lavender hair, and then grinned before taking his hand. "Not bad Trunks, you're getting much better. It's amazing how strong you are at your age." Gohan said and patted the dust out of his shirt. He put his hands on Trunks' shoulders and looked steadily at him with proud eyes. "It won't be long now Trunks. Soon we'll be able to beat the androids, we just need to stay focussed and keep training." He said, filling his young student with hope and purpose. Trunks nodded back enthusiastically.

Suddenly Gohans demeanour changed and the sky turned dim and colourless. He looked up and searched the sky which was suddenly full of smoke from burning debris. "Gohan w-what's wrong?" He asked. Gohan burst up into the sky above, his face anguished and his body braced. He powered into Super Saiyan and turned suddenly as an energy blast came from the grey smoke and struck him directly in the back, sending him flying forwards into the path of Android 17.

"Look what we've got here sis, it's the Saiyan." Android 17 said and with that Android 18 appeared out of the other billowing cloud of smoke with her arms crossed. "And look, his hair's changed colour again. How strange..." She said and then, with untraceable speed, she kicked Gohan in the stomach and Seventeen threw a volley of energy blasts at him. He screamed in pain and came crashing to the floor infront of Trunks.

"Gohan!" Trunks yelled and ran over to his friend and mentor. Gohan was badly hurt and bleeding all over, Trunks fearfully looked him over, he was in bad shape. With great effort Gohan turned around and faced Trunks. "T-Trunks… you've got to get away." He said. Trunks shook his head, fear etched into his boyish face. "No I'm not leaving you. I can fight too!" He said, desperate and angry but mostly frightened. Gohan winced and shook his head. "No, you need to go! Fly as fast as you can." He shouted and pushed Trunks away.

A shadow cast over them and they both looked up. The androids were hovering above, looking down at them with arms folded and a smug and satisfied smirk etched onto their faces.

Gohan struggled to his feet, glaring at them, a deathly determination on his face. He quickly turned back to him. "You must go Trunks, do as I say!" He told him firmly, his breathing however was laboured and he was wincing in pain. Trunks was about to reply but Gohan suddenly powered up with everything he had causing Trunks to stagger back from his power.

Eighteen rolled her eyes. "Touching but I've heard enough, it's time to end this." She said and held out her arm toward them and gathered energy. Gohan however intercepted her and launched himself at the two, fighting ferociously. The power coming from them was radiating and unlike anything Trunks had ever seen. He stumbled back in fearful awe, his legs frozen.

In two minds he wanted to help and also wanted to run, he winced in horror as he watched Gohan repeatedly take blow after blow. "Gohan!" He shouted in tears, and then saw them strike him hard down to the ground. Gohan yelled in pain and his power level dropped massively causing him to come out of Super Saiyan. Trunks' eyes widened and as if in slow motion, the two androids lined up in the air above him and held out their arms in unison. "Goodbye Saiyan." Seventeen said and they both sent a huge combined energy blast down at his already beaten body. He heard Gohan scream out in pain, followed by sudden silence. A stunned Trunks swayed on his feet.

"Gooohhaaaaannn!" He screamed and powered up all his might and launched himself towards his friend, but he was slow, no matter how hard he flew he wasn't getting any closer until his path was cut-off and he slammed to a halt.

"Hello there boy." Said the emotionless voice of Seventeen, Trunks shook in anger. "How would you like to meet your friend in the next dimension?" He asked with a smirk and slowly approached him. Trunks' eyes widened in terror and he slowly backed away but bumped into Eighteen who was directly behind him. She put her arms around him and moved her mouth close to his ear. "No Seventeen, let's not. I want to keep this one alive, he can be my plaything." She said and grinned at him. He struggled in her grip as the two of them began to laugh mercilessly. He fought with everything he had against her impossibly strong hold. Through the grasp of her arms he yelled in fear as Seventeen approached…

.

"Aaaah!" Trunks sat up in bed, covered in sweat. He looked around trying to remember where he was, his chest heaving heavily. Then the familiar walls of a Capsule Shelter sank in. 'It… it was a dream.' He realised and closed his eyes in relief taking a moment to catch his breath and calm his racing heart.

It was early hours and he was eating breakfast while watching the morning mist pass through the valley below. The strength of the dream still left an impression on him but it wasn't for the first time. He'd had that dream many times and each time it ended in a slightly different way, but what remained the same was the death of Gohan. It was something he would never forget. A steely determination took over him as he resolutely prepared to complete his mission. He would not return a failure, not again. He decided to head straight back to Forta Mont, well what was left of it, and didn't want to waste anymore time in the camp. He connected his belt and sword strap and powered up. 'Let's do this.' He told himself and then blasted off.

It took him about forty minutes before he reached the area, he powered down long before he was able to see the place, this time fully intending to remain hidden. As he reached the valley town he powered down completely and landed in the forest on the adjacent side of the simmering crater where the town originally stood. The area looked damp like it had been raining through the night, the fires were out and all that was left were slim columns of smouldering smoke scattered across the rubble. Staying to the edges he moved toward the plant and passed pieces of debris scattered about on the forest edge. He stuck to the cover of the tree line and kept his senses peeled for any signs of the androids. It was risky coming back so soon, he knew, but he simply couldn't risk not trying considering how important the processors were to the project.

He scaled the moss and vine covered gate surrounding the exterior of the plant and carefully approached the side of the building and headed toward a fire exit doorway that had been partially broken off at the bottom. He peered inside, the lights were still on and the place looked pretty much as it did yesterday, certainly no signs of damage, however from his vantage point he could only see so much. His target was the upper floor.

'Right this is it Trunks. Go in, grab the stuff and get out quickly and quietly.' He told himself and then gently stepped inside, eyes and ears primed. He swiftly made his way over the machinery and debris on the floor, moving from cover to cover and always checking his surroundings. He steered away from the pools of water and came to the stairway which led to the second floor. He hesitated but quickly gathered himself; his erratic pulse betraying his bravery. Slowly he started to climb the stairs trying not to make a sound on the rusty metal steps. As he neared the top he peered across the hallway and, seeing the coast was clear, slowly moved toward the office and peered inside, his movements and footsteps cat like.

'It doesn't look like she came back.' He thought excitedly, his confidence growing. He moved toward the crushed doorway but came to a sudden dead stop.

The boxes were gone. "No..." He whispered under his breath and rushed forward looking around desperately.

"This can't be..." There was nothing, no sign of the boxes, equipment or anything that had been here yesterday. He looked up to the storage room and leaped over the smashed doorway and peered inside. His eyes grew wide in shock, it was empty, everything, it was all gone, the shelves had been stripped bare. He held his head in his hands in despair. 'She must have known what I was doing.' He torturously figured but frowned in confusion because all of his experience in dealing with the androids ended in destruction, death and pain. They had never taken any active interest in anything he did beyond what they could do with him for their personal fun and games. There was no way she knew they were working on a time machine, Project Hope was absolutely top secret. It just didn't sit right with him, he looked around again, eyes scanning for any signs she had destroyed the equipment, burn marks, scorched walls etcetera, but there was nothing. A thought crossed his mind wondering whether looters had arrived throughout the night and cleaned the place out… but it seemed so unlikely given the towns' isolation and the fact that she had destroyed the entire place only yesterday, surely even desperate looters were afraid of attracting their attention.

He moved back out of the room and saw his rucksack resting against the wall, it looked intact and as if it had purposefully been placed there. With a raised eyebrow he approached it but stopped as he saw a piece of paper that had been folded and placed deliberately on top. He hesitated a moment and moved forward in trepidation before picking it up. The colour instantly fell from his face as he looked it over. It was addressed to him from Android 18.

"" _Because you left without saying goodbye yesterday I decided to take those items you were looking for. Don't worry they're safe, and you can have them back, but only if you meet me tonight. I'll be at the Ferris wheel in Canton City at 20:00._

 _Don't make me wait~_

 _xxx_

 _P.S_

 _If you don't turn up or you try anything stupid I'll destroy all of it. Bye x_ ""

Trunks stared at the paper, his mouth ajar. He slumped against the nearby wall and dropped his shoulders in despair. He didn't know what to make of it, at least entirely, as it was clearly a trap.

'I can't believe it…' He ran a hand through his hair and tried to figure the situation out, he knew if he went along with her it would only end one way, that he'd be played with and humiliated until she got bored and then very likely she'd destroy him or at least beat him to within an inch of his life… again. Regardless the items would be lost forever. Or would they…? His mind raced, they couldn't afford to lose the components they needed. Was it worth the risk to him? Yes there was a chance he could track down other items, they had identified other possible locations that would have what they need, however unlike the plant in Forta Mont those other places were in densely populated areas that had long since been attacked and ravaged by the androids and looters. The chances of finding what they needed in those circumstances were slim at best. He may find the other items scattered about but as for the drive core processors; there was no way he would get as lucky again. It would set them back at least a year for sure.

He crushed the letter in his hand and threw it against the wall, when it came to the androids they always seemed to be way ahead of him. He checked his watch it was still only 10:22, he had time, plenty of time to figure it out. He stood and picked up his rucksack and checked inside, making sure everything there was intact and that she'd left no tricks or devices that could lead her to him. He pulled out a blue capsule hoodie from his rucksack and put it on and then left for his camp. He had a lot to think about.

.

.

.

.

Eighteen had flown some 200 miles south of Canton City, it was a distance not really relevant to her considering her speed and endless energy. She was carrying a large sack of boxes she'd collected from the plant, it was the second trip she'd made since last night. She'd found a new purpose and she felt electrified, she couldn't remember ever being so excited. Well she could, only this was different from the usual excitement she got from destruction and hunting humans. No this was something else entirely, something new and it made her feel... alive. She came to a large group of volcanic islands in the ocean. It was once home to tens of thousands of humans whom had long since been 'removed' and now it was Eighteen and her brother that called this place home. She liked it, it had a great climate and it had more than enough room for the both of them.

She flew to the side of the largest island toward the long dormant volcano where the ocean met the cliff face. It was inaccessible from land and provided a great retreat. While they didn't need to sleep like humans, down time was something they enjoyed from time to time, and former summer palaces of royalty seemed the perfect place to setup a home. It was private and secure enough so that neither of them would be found unprepared and possibly deactivated by devious humans. Despite their confidence it would never happen, the memory of Dr. Gero activating and deactivating them at will still bothered them and was truly the only thing they feared. Afterall who could defeat them?

She landed in the large courtyard of the palace and brushed her windswept hair behind her ear and then headed for the opulent entrance dragging the sack behind her. The palace was huge and distinctly royal in décor with different layered wings of the house built into the cliff face offering amazing views out across the islands. The main hall was scattered with numerous items, all artefacts they'd found from their 'adventures' around the planet, most of it however was junk and most of that junk was Seventeen's. She strolled by the kitchen area where Seventeen was connecting a new expensive looking oven up to the mains and gas supply. He caught a glimpse of her as she passed, the large sack behind her scraping the marble floor. He raised an eyebrow and pulled himself up.

"Hello Eighteen." He said, a hint of sarcasm to his voice as she didn't even look at him when she passed. "Hi." She replied without stopping and headed off down toward the wing of the palace that was hers. Seventeen did a double check and poked his head around the corner toward her just to confirm what he thought he had seen. He was right, the distinct blue jacket that belonged to the Saiyan, well HAD belonged to, now she was wearing it which could only mean one thing – she finally killed the whelp.

He grinned and followed her down the hall until she entered one of the rooms; he wanted to know the juicy details. He came to the entrance and smirked, folded his arms and leaned against the doorway as he watched her take off the jacket and place it onto one of her many clothes racks.

"I didn't expect you to take my advice so literally." He said making her stop and turn around. "Had some fun with your boyfriend then?" He said raising his eyebrows in expectation. She looked at him, then back toward the jacket, a slight tint of red to her cheeks.

"You know I thought I sensed him last night, he gave off a great amount of energy." He looked at her straight on. "So how did you finish him?" He ran multiple possible scenarios through his head. She could be quite creative when it came to extermination.

"No he's still alive." She said, her voice quieter than usual.

His face fell and he looked at her deflated. She opened the large sack she had dragged inside and threw the boxes on top of the pile she had brought back last night. He didn't have a chance to ask her what they were the first time and he was genuinely curious because she never brought anything home with her unless it was clothes related or something associated with her vanity. He raised an eyebrow suspiciously.

"I assume these items have something to do with him still being alive then?" He asked.

"Maybe." She said and crouched down looking through them. She pulled out a piece of paper and started looking at it and comparing something to each box.

He persisted, genuinely curious. "May I ask what they are?"

She stopped and looked up at him, slightly annoyed. "Didn't you tell me to take an interest in something beyond killing humans?" She asked, her voice clipped as was often the case recently. "Well, I'm taking an interest in something." She deflected his question and turned back to the boxes.

Seventeen looked at the boxes, and then back up at her, there was something on her face, something a little bit peculiar and he needed to find out what it was. "You've taken an interest in… circuitry?" He asked, still no idea what they were beyond electronic components.

"I don't know what they are, but he does." She said and then her eyes lit up as she found a particular box and stood up looking at it. "I found him gathering them, they seemed quite important to him, so I took them."

He blinked, he knew there was something going on, but what was it? Yes she could simply be teasing the Saiyan boy for fun, years ago he would have expected that but he knew his sister and he knew something else was up, so he had to ask. "Why?"

She glared at him, he was starting to annoy her but at the same time she knew this would inevitably come up and sooner or later she would have to explain it to him. She sighed. "Look, yesterday, what you said made me think. We do need to change our habits and well I decided to…" She hesitated and diverted her eyes. "Investigate… something…" She trailed off, finding it difficult to say aloud.

Seventeen raised an eyebrow and stood up straight from the wall. 'This is strange.' He thought, she was genuinely finding it difficult to speak which was something he couldn't ever remember happening. "Investigate what?" He pressed.

Her eyes darted to the side in frustration and embarrassment, and his persistent pressing only made it more difficult. Eventually however she gave in and plain come out with it. "Him alright! I investigated him!" She said, battling a growing blush in her face, immediately regretting being so forward as Seventeens' jaw dropped.

Now he was lost for words. Her annoyed glare turned into a rapidly growing angry one. "If you've got something to say then say it, don't just stand there looking like an idiot!" She growled, face red.

"I… was right wasn't I? I can't believe it..." He stared at her, eyes wide and began to nod as if everything he'd been suspicious of for a long time now had finally begun to make sense. "You've fallen for that Saiyan boy!" He stated. She looked at him ready to deny it but at the last moment turned her head to the side with red cheeks.

He was lost for words. He knew she behaved strangely around him and that he teased her about it but he never expected her to actually follow through with anything.

She folded her arms, she knew if she didn't get it out in the open he'd pester her relentlessly. "I just, for some time now have been having dreams and remembering things from before and, well… feeling… things." Her blush peaked. "I thought it would be a good idea to explore other interests, and…" She hesitated a moment but then carried on, her voice quiet. "…and other company." She turned away from him.

Though still completely shocked Seventeen began to think more seriously. As much as he wanted to use this situation to have his own fun, and without doubt this would provide an endless amount of ammunition to throw at her when he was bored, however he knew this was uncharted territory and could see something was changing in her. And if he was being honest, it was happening to him to. Dreams, visions and memories of times before had been occurring over the last year, well possibly longer than that. They happened during long periods of downtime, the constant thrill of destruction they had been on since they were awakened had long come to an end and the frequency of these strange visions were increasing because of it.

He straightened out and crossed his arms in contemplation. Eighteen peered at him over her shoulder as she noticed he'd been silent for a while. To her relief she could tell he was thinking about it with a degree of seriousness.

"OK well let's think about this." He said trying to come to terms with it, lost in deep consideration. Eighteen turned around to face him fully, hoping he would come up with some plan or idea that would help her as it had all happened rather fast. She was changing, she knew, it was slow at first and far between but now, especially around him, she was changing… and she needed someone or something to talk to because she had no experience of dealing with this.

"Tell me again what you plan to do with these… things?" He asked referring to the pile of boxes scattered about around her.

Eighteen looked down at the box and the list in her hands and the back up at him, checking to make sure it was safe to reveal more information to him. She was already uncomfortable in speaking about this with him, but she had no one else and it looked as if he was interested at least.

"After he fled I found this list and these boxes." She said holding up the paper. "He was gathering this equipment for something, it seemed really important to him." She said and Seventeen approached her and held out his hand for the list. She hesitated but in the end gave it to him to look at.

"Hmmm. 'Project Hope' I wonder what that is…" He said and ran his eyes over the content and then down at the boxes. "And these items match what's on the list?" He asked. She nodded. "I don't think he expected me to find it, I didn't realise at first but he tried to lead me away from them." She said smiling at the memory of their encounter and the fun she had destroying the town.

Seventeen crouched down looking at the boxes more carefully. They were pieces of highly advanced technology, clearly he was collecting them to build something. A computer or some kind of machinery. "They don't look like things humans normally scavenge." He commented aloud.

"He's not human." She stated, a tint of anger in her tone. Seventeen looked up at her, "You know what I mean." He said and stood up. "So what's your plan?"

She shrugged. "Seeing as he left it all I figured he'd be back again, so I left a note telling him to meet me tonight." She waved a hand at the boxes. "I took these as a guarantee and threatened to destroy them if he didn't turn up." She said smiling at her resourcefulness.

Seventeen looked at her a moment as if hesitating to say something. "You mean like a… date?" He asked, a slight horror cast across his usual stoic features.

Her face dropped and she glared at him, back on the defensive. "Yeah so? I like him Seventeen and I want to have some fun." She stated and then the reality of what she'd just confessed aloud replayed in the form of a new blush on her pale cheeks. She turned away again.

Seventeen blinked and marvelled at his sister. 'Wow she really is serious.' He decided to state the obvious problem in her new found interest in the hope it would lovingly bring her back down to reality before she left the atmosphere completely. "I can't imagine this Trunks guy is as willing for this relationship as you are."

She turned and looked at him before her eyes drifted off to the side in thought. Yes she knew this was the case, it would be difficult to get him to see her past the usual old hate and fear, but it didn't matter what he wanted. After yesterday she could tell something had happened to him and she had every intention of exploring and exploiting that feeling and making him see her that way.

"Yes well it doesn't matter, all that matters is that he does what I say. In time he'll see things my way." She declared, her voice silky and confident.

'This isn't going to end well.' Seventeen sighed inwardly. As much as he found the whole situation hilarious he was beginning to get worried for her, or perhaps worried for himself because when this 'episode' comes to an end, he was the one that would have to deal with it. She could get pretty damn feisty when things weren't going her way and once this hits the fan, the motherlode of all tantrums would be unleashed and with humans out of the picture, he'd likely receive the brunt of it. However there was also another problem; it was dangerous - extremely dangerous.

He looked at her straight. "Eighteen listen, if you want to do this fine, go and have your fun, but be careful." He said, his voice serious.

"Huh…?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Remember this guy wants to kill us, he's already tried to kill us and for all we know these things that he's collecting are intended to be used to kill us in some way." He stated. "Don't let your guard down."

She laughed and looked at him as if he'd gone mad. "Are you for real Seventeen? He's not capable of hurting me, you should know that." She started thinking her brother had lost his mind.

"Clearly, but just don't drop your guard is all I'm saying." He said and put one hand on his waist and referred to himself with the other. "Remember I'm not going to be there to help you." He said, suddenly looking like a stuck-up, over protective brother.

She glared at him, not liking being told what to do, and turned around. "Whatever Seventeen, I know how to handle myself." She said and headed out of the room toward her own private side of the palace flicking her hair from her face.

Seventeen watched her leave and glanced back down at the list in his hand.

.

.

.

.

Trunks had spent the rest of the day struggling with the decision he was faced with. He washed himself in the cold river, had lunch and was thankful that he had a change of clothes now that he had his rucksack back.

Most of the time however he spent looking over the information on the tracker his mother passed to him. It contained the other possible locations scattered around the world, but no matter how much he tried to estimate the chances of finding the drive core processors he knew he would need massive luck and a heck of a lot of time. Both things he didn't like to rely on.

He checked his watch, it was 18:45. 'I'll need at least 30 minutes to make it to Canton' He considered, remembering her 20:00 deadline. He was lost in thought until…

 **-ring-ring-**

He nearly jumped out of his skin. He looked down at the buzzing cellphone attached to his belt and snatched it out. "Geez!" He breathed. "Get it together Trunks." He flipped it open and brought it to his ear.

"Hi mom." He said, knowing she was the only one with the direct line.

"Trunks, I've been waiting for you to contact me, I've been so worried!" Bulma said. Trunks sighed and smiled, he knew his mother would act like this but it was still nice to hear her voice after all that had happened.

"Sorry mom I've been busy." He said and rubbed the back of his neck out of habit, something he did alot when speaking with his mother. She had a way of making him feel like he was still five years old.

"Yes I know you've been busy, but couldn't you at least spare five minutes and call me, you know, like we agreed?" She protested.

"Yeah…" He said suddenly feeling like a little child again. He could almost hear disappointed head shake through the phone.

"Anyway mister, an update would be nice!" She said in her usual spirited way, he was used to it of course.

"It's… going well." He said, his voice almost betraying him. He tried to sound as enthusiastic as possible but he was dealing with his mother here.

"Really? I thought the Forta Mont plant might have been ruined by now." She asked, her own voice pepping up slightly with excitement.

"No, no it's still standing and it's in great condition. I even managed to get the power working again." He said unable to help himself from encouraging her despite the situation.

"Wow that's great news!" She proclaimed, clearly excited. "So… did you find anything?" She asked.

Trunks hesitated. "I… I did." He stammered.

Bulma was silent a moment before speaking. "You did? You don't sound very excited, is something wrong?" She commented but before Trunks could speak she started. "Wait, you didn't run into the androids did you?" Her tone changed on a dime to one of complete worry and panic.

"Nooo, no I'm fine mother, really." He said trying to avert her from going down that path again. He knew if he didn't stop her now she'd order him back, seal him away and he'd never be able to train, go fishing or be given any responsibility for Project Hope again.

"…really?" She asked, clearly doubtful.

"Yes really." He said, he was getting better at lying about it and it was tearing him apart. "I found some items inside; I'm just having difficulty in locating them because the plant's badly damaged." He said, his lies continuing.

"Oh…" She calmed down. "Well do you need help? I could send over a team to help lo-"

"No!" He cut her off. "No. Really I'm fine. I'll be done by tomorrow I promise."

"Tomorrow? Wow, alright then." She said deciding to believe him. "Just promise me you'll be careful, there's been no sighting of the androids lately, no one knows where they are." She said.

Trunks' eyes dropped to his feet and he rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "Yeah… I will, I promise." He said, his voice low.

Bulma remained quiet.

"Well mom, I've gotta go, I'll contact you soon." He said.

"…OK hun, take care, I love you." She said.

"Love you too mom." He said and closed his phone.

He stood standing with his cellphone in his hand feeling like the worst person in the world. 'I couldn't tell her about what happened, I couldn't.' He told himself. Time and time again the androids would beat him, intercept him, follow him and generally humiliate and defeat him on a whim. And each and every time he would return a failure, but he didn't want to return a failure anymore, he couldn't bare it. Everyone was relying on him, it was more than just him and his mother, what about the others that had no way of defending themselves or escaping? What about their sacrifices and losses in this fight? Their lives matter to!

He clenched his fist and looked up. 'No, things are going to change today. The end of this nightmare will be delivered by my hand. I will not run away!' He grit his teeth and looked up, eyes determined.

.

.

Bulma stared at her phone. She knew something was wrong, a mother's intuition, or was it woman's intuition? She couldn't tell, but she knew one thing, something wasn't right. Thinking back over the conversation he said the building was in fine condition and moments later said it was ruined. Of course he was lying, the only question was why. "What would make my boy lie to me?" She asked herself and took a moment in consideration before swivelling around in her chair and moving to her computer.

She ran through a few commands and opened a tracking program and fed it some data. On the screen it showed a map and a little red dot. She blinked in surprise.

"That's not Forta Mont…" She said and then zoomed out of the map. Her eyes widened. "He's almost two hundred miles away." She sat back in the chair and stared at the screen trying to run through the possibilities.

"What are you doing Trunks?"

She remembered his voice on the phone, she knew there was something wrong with him and if he was in danger that was something she just couldn't risk ignoring. Determined she typed in a few commands into the computer and up popped a man on the screen. He jumped in surprise and sat up straight.

"Oh, um, do you need something ma'am?" He asked.

"Yes prepare my car I need to head out." Bulma said.

"Oh where are you heading? Shall I send some soldiers to accompany you?"

"It's an area two hundred miles north east of Forta Mont, and no I don't need any soldiers." She said and the man's eyes widened.

"B-but that area is far outside known safe boundaries, it's far too dangerous without soldiers scouting the way, and besides it'll take you over ten hours I simply can-" He was about to carry on but Bulma cut him off.

"Oh just prepare the car already!"

"A-ah yes, r-right away ma'am..." He said and cut the feed.

Bulma stood up and tied her hair back and removed her lab coat. She had to protect her son.

.

.

.

.

Trunks had left way earlier than he needed to. He figured if he arrived before she did he would be able to find a good vantage point to survey the location, see her arrive and with any luck, he'd be able to see where she was keeping the components she'd taken.

From a distance he could make out Canton City and the huge Ferris wheel in the amusement park on the eastern side. He powered down and headed toward the fairground but kept his distance as he scouted the area. The fair had long since been abandoned and was gradually being reclaimed by nature. The old cowboy themed wooden buildings were crumbling and most of the fair rides themselves where ruined. The wider Canton City area was one of the most frequent locations the androids where sighted and strangely the city itself was not as worse off as most. However due to their presence in the area there were no humans living here aside from a resistance faction hidden in the forests to the west whom had been critical in providing android location updates to the wider resistance.

He landed on the broken and crumbling rollercoaster track and peered down at the fair ground. 'OK Trunks she chose this area for a reason, you know it's a trap so you need to be smart.' He told himself as he analysed the area infront of the Ferris wheel. It didn't take long before he sighed and shook his head, it didn't look good. It was an area with nothing but a few sporadic trees, a central fountain, benches and small food stalls creating a huge open circular area in the centre. It was once used for festivals and firework displays intended for large gatherings of people. In other words, there was very little cover or places to hide. He looked across to the wider area and aside from merry-go-rounds, kids rides and a few small wooden buildings, it was more of the same. To the east of the fair was the sea and to the north and south where breaches that ran for miles, so it only left Canton City that provided immediate cover, but still the city wasn't a financial district, it wasn't full of skyscrapers and huge buildings. It was mostly residential meaning it was flat and void of cover and the last thing he wanted was for her to destroy yet another habitable location like Forta Mont.

He checked his watch, it was 19:34, he still had some time but he knew she could arrive at any moment, he needed to find a good vantage point. He spotted a large clock tower building to the west of the square and deemed that to be the best spot as it not only provided cover from multiple sides, it also gave him a great vantage point and he could quickly make for the city from the position if needed. He got to his feet and after a quick look around he jumped down the tracks and swiftly shot across the square toward the clock tower. He leaped upward and landed on the roof and then jumped inside the little steeple at the top. He ducked and peered around to make sure no one spotted him and then unpacked his mini-binoculars from his belt and settled himself down. Now it was just a matter of waiting.

.

.

.

.

Eighteen fixed a bracelet on her wrist and ran a comb through her still damp hair one last time. She had taken a bath in the natural spring on the island which she had cordoned off for only her use, and since then had been excitedly going through her huge collection of clothes in preparation for her 'date.'

She looked in one of her many full sized dress mirrors and admired herself, turning and looking over her shoulder at her profile. She was wearing a light blue sleeveless button up shirt which she had undone at the top to show off her neck and collarbone, calf-length white jeans and a pair of black sandals tied at the ankle. She straightened out and smiled at herself, genuinely excited.

She couldn't remember ever feeling so alive, for a long time now her and Seventeens daily routine was based purely on their prime directive to destroy humans. They had never questioned it before, well not to any sufficient degree, it was simply the first thing that came to mind for them, and it just so happened to be incredibly fun. So why would they question their programming? Their physiology meant that they were still human in many ways, they could feel, dream, communicate and perform all the same bodily functions they originally could before Dr. Gero got his hands on them. It was probably more accurate to call them cyborgs or augmented humans rather than androids. Instead their programming was more akin to inbuilt _drives_ that they just so happened to gain pleasure from fulfilling. Only now it was becoming difficult to fulfil those drives and other things were taking precedence.

She had been changing ever so slightly, she noticed it in herself, and she'd seen it in Seventeen to. She supposed it was because once upon a time they didn't have time to think between each moment of destruction, their prime directive was being fulfilled and it took priority over anything else happening inside of them. It wasn't that she suddenly regretted their behaviour, no she loved having fun, but she was also smart enough to realise that things were changing, and in turn, reflecting on herself and her desires.

The thought of being close to Trunks, the Saiyan boy she had once spared on a whim, had been playing in her mind over and over again. She couldn't quite remember exactly when these feelings began, probably because this was brand new to her and she didn't recognise the emotions when they occurred never mind understand them. However the past six months especially had revealed to her a whole new world, like something had opened inside and it filled her with something she didn't quite know how to deal with. She only knew that she wanted more of it and was determined to make it happen… afterall she had the power to do so didn't she?

She attached some simple round earrings and smiled. 'Time to go see Trunks.' She thought and made for the door, but stopped and turned around, nearly forgetting something. She picked up the box from her bed and opened it up. Inside was a bundle of processors, sealed in a hard-case, small enough to slide into her pocket. She fastened the button on her shirt pocket and with a smile left her room.

Seventeen was sitting with his feet up on a huge lounge chair they 'liberated' from a store over a year ago and looked up from his book as she passed the opening to the courtyard, Trunks' jacket in her arm.

"Off to see the Saiyan I take it?" He asked, he'd kind of gotten over the shock of the whole ordeal and decided, for now, to simply let it play out. However he wasn't heartless, he did care for his twin sister.

"Yep." She said as she slipped Trunks' jacket on and turned to leave.

"Eighteen wait." He said and lowered the book, looking at her between his feet which he had resting up on the chair. She turned toward him, half expecting him to say something, she knew he couldn't resist. "What is it Seventeen?" She sighed.

"Remember what I said earlier, be careful and don't forget that if given the chance he'd kill you." He said, his voice gravely serious.

She stared at him blankly for a few seconds. "Are you finished?" She asked looking bored. He looked at her for a few heavy seconds before turning back to his book. "Have fun…" He groaned.

.

.

It only took her twenty minutes to travel the 200 miles to Canton City, she could have gotten their faster but she was ten minutes early and she wanted to sense him coming. The thought did occur to her about how this might play out, but it didn't matter so much as she'd make it up as she got there. Really she only wanted to be near him, she was new to it all and there were many things she wanted to experience, especially that strange warm feeling she got when she kissed him yesterday. She smiled at the memory and a pinkish blush appeared on her cheeks.

She hovered above the Ferris wheel and looked down around the large square below, there were no signs he was here and she couldn't sense him. She glanced at her watch, there was still a few minutes left so she dropped down and headed straight for the ornate bench near the fountain.

She looked around at the scenery, the sun was low on the horizon and cast a warm orange glow across the overgrown amusement park, the buildings were collapsed and the rides had long stopped being operable. She felt a sudden pang of disappointment about that, not so much for the park itself, but because she couldn't experience the place with Trunks. But it was irrelevant now anyway, the main attraction was to come so she sat down and fixed her hair with a smile.

.

.

Trunks was waiting, his eyes peeled but it wasn't until 19:50 that he suddenly saw something in the southern sky. 'It's her.' He thought and perked up, gathering his wits about him. Immediately his pulse increased and his body tensed, the years of living in constant fear and oppression had already taken a huge toll on him despite his youth.

From his vantage point it looked like she was alone but he knew he couldn't afford to believe that, Android 17 would be near as he always was. Yes she may have been alone last time, but now that she planned this, he would be here. They were masters at finding and playing with their prey, they delighted in teasing their victims until they got bored before killing them. And now he was their prey, he knew that for sure, it was just a matter of time before she got bored with whatever game she wanted to play with him. However he wasn't prepared to let that happen.

She hovered above for a few moments, no doubt looking for him but then dropped to the ground and sat down on a bench. He frowned and pulled out his binoculars and looked through at her. She was smiling to herself and wearing his jacket which was too big for her, making her look even more deceptively small and cute. After a short while she pulled out a small flip-mirror and checked herself out before putting it away again in her pocket. Despite what he thought and felt about her, through the narrow lens of his binoculars it looked like she was a normal girl waiting for her date at the fairground. It was almost like time had reversed and they lived in a world where that stuff still happened. He pulled the binoculars away however and the reality of the world made itself starkly clear. The fair was a decrepit waste-land, buildings crumbling, rides weather beaten and rusted and there were absolutely no signs of people, and it was all because of her. Despite her beautiful appearance, he knew what he was dealing with and that's why it made it harder for him to entertain the idea of interacting with her beyond that of combat. He didn't want to believe she could be anything other than a monster, the same one that murdered countless people including those closest to him and that had made the lives of survivors a desperate and oppressive existence. If he approached her now it would mean he had to deal with her on a 'civil' level and he doubted he could do it.

He clenched his jaw, reminding himself of why he was here. He noted he hadn't seen any signs of the equipment she said she would give back to him in the letter. He shook his head, he was foolish to believe she was true to her word, but still he was at a loss for what to do. If he stepped out now and made himself known there was every chance he would be killed this night after she had had her way with him. However it wasn't his life he was worried about; it was what it would do to his mother who had already suffered so much. If he died now it was likely his mother and all the people depending on him would never track down the items they needed, or at the very least it would be years before they did, and during that time how many more people would die?

He turned away in frustration. Was it possible? Could he walk away tonight with the things he needed? Or was he simply being baited so she could destroy him like she had done with the Z-Fighters and so many innocent people? He felt a fool for even thinking otherwise, but at the same time, her behaviour recently and the fact that he was still alive after so many times being at her mercy and then spared at the end made him think there was a possibility. He clenched his fist, he was at a loss for what to do. He hesitated and looked back down at the binoculars and returned to observing her.

.

.

.

.

The sun had disappeared behind the western mountains and the sky took on darker shades of blue and red. Eighteen looked away from the twilight sky and back down at her watch - it was 20:15, and her good mood had sunk. She concentrated and looked around, reaching out with her senses.

'If he doesn't turn up now…' She felt her anger building inside of her. She folded her arms, her expression twisting into anger.

Trunks looked down at her, sweat dripping from his brow. It had been twenty minutes and she was still standing there waiting for him. He didn't expect it at all, he thought she would have given up and destroyed something by now. 'Why is she taking this so far?' He wondered and looked through his binoculars again. She looked pissed and, if his eyes weren't betraying him, disappointed. Somewhere in the deepest recesses of his heart he almost felt bad.

.

Eighteen was simmering in anger and she wanted to destroy the entire fairground and the city. She couldn't sense him, nothing at all even in the distance. She looked at her watch again, 20:28. After everything she had planned for, the possibilities she hoped to explore and looked forward to had been extinguished because he ignored her simple request. Her anger grew, her most familiar emotion, and it was beginning to crush all of the new emotions that had made her so happy. Yet at the same time, she didn't want to give into it again, she didn't want to forget these new feelings. That thought alone frightened her. She had given in to her prime directive every single day of her existence since she was awoken by Dr. Gero. It was too strong, it gripped her and tightened like a vice the more she resisted it. It begged her to give into her programming for destruction but somewhere, amidst the struggle, she was aware of losing herself and so held onto the sense of hope she felt when being with him. Hope for something more than a destruction that she knew would increase her own misery. She had started to feel like an actual girl for once in her existence, as if everything she had found interesting up to this moment, from clothes and magazines, to finding exotic locations and pleasant music, had all been indicators to her real self. But those things were numb, distant and mere echoes of who she truly was, as if they were merely indicators revealing her hidden self that was desperate to get out.

She took out the small processor bundle from her pocket and stared at it in her shaking hand. Since last night she had been preparing for this evening, allowing herself to indulge in things she never had before, the dream of experiencing something beyond her programmed limits...

She bit her lower lip as she held onto her earlier feelings while staring intently at the processor and what it had meant to her. She was dying to crush it, her fingers popped in restraint as she fought an internal battle for control of her own mind and body, and then, just as she was about to give into the anger again she resisted with one last effort and suddenly… it disappeared.

She blinked in surprise and stared down at her hand, the impulse of her prime directive, she'd pushed it aside, it was gone and it felt like a weight had been lifted from her. Her eyes widened in wonder at the sudden clarity of her mind. She marvelled at the freedom and the colours of thought, creativity and her desires and hope. Hope for a future where she wasn't restricted to destruction, and a future where she wasn't alone... 'Trunks…' She thought immediately, her mind racing with new wonder. She looked around in hope he was there, however what met her was something entirely different. The park was desolate, barren and dark and she stood in the midst of it, alone, not just physically, but emotionally in more ways than one. Her eyes fell and defocussed, she felt something, warmth in her eyes. She blinked and felt tears roll down her cheeks. 'I'm... I'm crying...' Her eyes widened suddenly as she felt something overwhelming… Her face twisted and her body began to convulse, like a vacuum being filled, a tidal wave of emotion poured in to take the place of the once immense emptiness that had been her mind. She stumbled back down toward the bench and felt her body and shoulders shake at the overwhelming torrent of feelings flowing through her. Tears fell from her eyes and she cried out across the square as fear, loneliness, sorrow and pain all caught up with her. Everything that had been pushed aside and squashed beneath her programming over the years bubbled up to the surface like a volcanic eruption and she recognised each and every one of them, it was relentless and unmerciful.

.

Trunks stared flabbergasted as he looked at the scene before him, she was crying out across the square - a gut-wrenching, soul crushing cry of anguish and sorrow. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine this would happen. He looked between the binoculars and his own eyes repeatedly just to confirm what he was seeing. He dropped the binoculars and shook his head in disbelief and sank against the side of the wooden steeple. "What… does this mean…?" He asked himself over and over, staring wide eyed at her from above. Her display of emotion, the genuine pain in her cry… she sounded like a normal girl, a very hurt normal girl. It was the type of cry he'd heard from the grieving families of dead loved ones, of orphaned children who had lost their parents at the hand of the androids. But this time it was her that was crying out like this… what did it mean? His mind raced and he shook his head at the mere thought she was genuinely feeling something, it went against all of her actions up to this point.

'No, this isn't happening…' He told himself, not accepting it. He didn't want to see it, he couldn't, he didn't know what to do or how to feel and he stumbled out of the small steeple on the clock tower and moved onto the roof. He had to get away. He had to understand what this meant. He leaped off the roof and took to the sky, flying away fast toward the city.

.

In the midst of her despair she felt something, like a bright ping flash through her mind amidst the turmoil and she recognised it instantly. It was him, it was Trunks. Her head darted up blinking through tears, she could feel him nearby, it was faint but he was definitely somewhere. Gingerly she took to her feet and looked toward the direction it came from. Immediately she flew up toward the clock tower and looked around and instantly something caught her eye, glistening in the steeple. She flew in and picked it up. 'Binoculars…?' She looked at them, she'd never seen them before but they were still warm. '…was he here all this time?' She wiped her eyes, her face tear stricken, and focussed onto his gradually dimming power in the distance. She decided to follow him, she had to see him, no she needed to see him.

She leaped from the roof and sped off after him.

.

.

Trunks flew, hard. His mind raced and his thoughts didn't match what he was feeling. The image of her bawling out from the depths of a heart he never thought she had completely shook him. Her face, that face, the one that had been the source of so many of his nightmares, and more recently of feelings he didn't dare want to admit, left him totally shaken…

'What does this mean, she can feel? She has a heart?' He frowned, it simply didn't make sense.

'If she could feel all this time, if she knew what pain was, what fear, love and hope was, how could she be so cold and heartless!?' His mind screamed and he blasted off faster, desperate to vent his frustration out in any way possible.

He needed time to figure it out. He'd failed his mission, in more ways than one; he simply wasn't ready or able to cope with this as he was now, and coming face to face with her would be a bad idea. He needed an escape, to regroup and think about what came next. He decided to return to camp.

By the time he reached the camp the sun had already set and the valley was cast in darkness except for the light of the full moon over the mountain top, casting a bluish tint to the snow topped mountains and reflecting on the capsule shelter in the camp.

He landed and immediately undid his belt and shoulder strap and threw them both down, along with his sword, feeling them restrictive. He picked up some firewood and threw it into the centre pit and with a little manipulation of his energy, set it alight. It instantly began to grow and cast its warm orange glow across the campsite. He flopped down against the log and ran his fingers through his windswept hair and growled into his hands. Nothing had gone as he planned since he left on this mission and now, on top of all that, he was having to battle emotions and perceptions deep inside him and reconsider just what the hell his sworn enemy was.

Of course nothing took away the cruelty, the destruction and death that she had inflicted on the earth… but… the image of her shaking body and anguished cries was undeniable. He knew pain, knew suffering and heard so much crying in his short life, he could tell that hers was as genuine as anyone's. It unsettled him to even think that.

He shook his head at the sheer inconceivability of it. "Is she in pain? Is it always this way for her?" He asked himself. "Maybe she's not entirely in control of herself…" He voiced aloud, staring into the dancing flames in consideration. He had nothing else to go on to explain what he'd witnessed. He pulled his knees up against his chest and buried his head into them. He considered going home.

.

.

Eighteen followed him at a great distance, nightfall made it easier for her to remain hidden but Trunks himself seemed so pre-occupied that he wasn't being anywhere near as careful as he usually was when she had followed him in the past. The journey itself had been difficult for her, inside she was a whirling wind of confusion, anguish and, as usual, anger, however this time she was desperately trying to fight it back and at the same time keep herself together as the emotions kept coming at her. Afterall he was right there infront of her, it wouldn't take her much effort to catch up to him and take him for herself. She knew right now if she turned around and went back to Seventeen, went back to that old way of living she was so used to she would lose her mind. She was desperate, desperate to hold on to what she had found. She needed Trunks; there was no doubt in her mind.

She watched him fly into a forest valley and toward a small clearing on the cliff edge, her stricken eyes never leaving him, the light of the full moon helped in that regard. Eventually he lowered down and landed in what looked like a campsite. She carefully flew around the valley to the cliff-face his campsite was on and flew above the trees before landing on cliff above him. careful not to make a sound. She quietly moved to the edge and peered down at him, for now just wanting to keep her distance and observe him. She needed to think about how to do this…

From her perspective he looked frustrated and really downcast and remarkably she didn't like seeing it. It was like something hidden had awoken inside of her and had suddenly been given freedom to breathe and grow. She watched him, her tearful eyes attentive to his every move as he appeared to go through a whole range of emotions. She wanted so much to jump down and approach him, to just do something, it was instinctual with her and she was about to give in to it before…

" _Is she in pain? Is it always this way for her?_ " She heard him say. Her eyes widened in surprise. 'So he was there…' She thought and felt her heart thud in her chest and she blinked back tears. 'He's thinking of me…' She was about to jump down but he spoke again.

" _Maybe she's not entirely in control of herself…_ " He said aloud and she stopped, his words struck a chord with her. 'I'm… not in control of myself?' His words seemed to reflect what she had just gone through, the inner battle for her own mind and body. Was her programming suppressing the real person she was, the girl she had been? She looked away, her eyes narrowed, she felt something like a distant dream from a great distance away, 'What is this...?' She wondered and her eyes slowly opened wide and a rush of memories came flooding forward.

She looked down at her hands, she could feel herself, she was small, a child, holding the chains of a swing. She was laughing. The memory flickered through her mind like an old blinking projector. She marvelled, the laughter, she was so happy and... there was another person there, a woman, blonde hair, smiling… smiling at her. The woman held her close and brought her mouth to her ear.

"La zu li…" Eighteen quietly echoed the syllables and tears began to fall from her eyes. 'My name… my name is Lazuli.' She remembered. She looked at Trunks below, he sat holding his head. Her chest heaved, felt like a clamp on her heart. It was too much, she suppressed herself from crying and after another look at him, she stood and retreated back into the forest. She had to think…

.

.

To be continued…

.

.

* * *

.

.

I didn't plan on this chapter being so large, it kinda just happened. It makes it difficult to approach and fix errors when I only have a small amount of time to write. However I'm pretty much settled on how it'll end now, chapter 3 will be the conclusion. (￣ｰ￣)ﾉ

As always thanks for reading and reviewing!

Cheers!

Keshin


	3. Chapter 3

Here it is at last! I'm sorry about the delay I had some unexpected things I had to take care of. Many thanks for the feedback guys.

.

I hope you enjoy it!

 **.**

 **.**

"Speech"

'Thought'

.

.

* * *

.

 **The Shadow of Hope**

.

 _Chapter Three_

.

.

.

Trunks was lying down staring up at the roof of the capsule shelter. He didn't bother making anything to eat, he didn't have the appetite for it and rather decided getting some sleep was what he really needed. It was easier said than done however as he couldn't get the image of her out of his mind, it posed so many questions and possibilities. Had he made the wrong call? If he had gone to her would he now have the equipment he needed? Would he even be alive?

He took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. 'I guess I'll return home tomorrow.' He thought, resignation setting in and he rubbed at the growing tension between his eyes. 'How will I explain this to mom?' He thought, regretting now that he had lied to her earlier. He took another deep breath and thought about his master, something he usually did when he looked for answers. 'How would you have handled this Gohan? Father? Or you Goku?' His mind drifted onto the people he didn't know, the fighters, the heroes who had protected this planet so many times but had perished in this horrible nightmare. He knew them only by stories told by Gohan and his mother.

The memory of his mother secretly crying alone in the room at night pierced his thoughts and he turned to his side and stared blankly, he was tired, not just physically but emotionally. He needed to sleep and it wasn't long before the bliss of dreamless unconsciousness took hold of him.

.

.

.

It was early morning and Trunks was lying sprawled out inside the capsule shelter wearing only his vest and black trousers which he left on due to the cold. He had one leg up on the wall of the shelter and the other one bent underneath him. A snapping noise, like a twig breaking, filled the camp and made his unconscious face twitch in response. It wasn't enough to wake him however and instead he smacked his lips and turned his head to the side in response. Time passed and it happened again, only this time it was louder. He opened a groggy eye and lifted his head, still not quite sure he heard something. He could see the daylight permeating the entrance to the shelter and could hear the sound of forest birds tweeting. He waited but didn't hear anything and dropped his head back down and told himself it was probably the embers of last night's dying campfire. He turned over on his side and closed his eyes intending to return to his heavy sleep.

- **snap** -

His sleepy eyes opened wide and he sat up. He leaned across to the entrance but stopped suddenly as the door zip was partially opened. He looked at it for a moment, the memory of climbing into bed last night was blurry and his mind wasn't working very well. He shook his head and unzipped the entrance fully and peered outside. Immediately a flock of birds scattered from the camp as he disturbed them. He blinked in response and then let out a long sigh and ran his hand through his scruffy hair. He checked his watch, it was 05:54. 'Oh man…' He groaned and rolled his eyes.

'I might as well get up.' He thought and gathered himself together. He pulled himself out of the shelter and let out a huge yawn which was interrupted by a loud growl from his stomach. He winced. 'Ah man, better have something to eat before I head home.'

He groggily took his hoodie from the capsule shelter and slipped it on and looked around the camp. His refrigerator was there; only the door was swinging open. 'Wait… I never ate last night.' He thought and then caught sight of his belt buckle and sword perched up against the log neatly. 'What the... when did I…?'

"Rise and shine sunshine." Eighteen said behind him.

Trunks froze, her voice was like a razor cutting through his morning lethargy. He slowly turned around, completely rigged, his face the picture of shock. She was sitting down against the log with her legs crossed wearing his jacket and drinking one of his cans of juice.

Her face was streaked and stained, though she wasn't looking at him, instead her eyes were cast out over the valley. Eventually she rolled her eyes to him, her face blank and if possible, tired. "I was going to wake you earlier but thought I'd let you sleep, you looked pretty tired." She said and put the can down and stood up wiping her hands and the backside of her somewhat dirty white jeans.

Trunks' eyes darted between her and the shelter, 'She was here last night?' His pulse began to race and he steadied himself. "H-How did you…"

"How did I find you?" She finished for him. "You left me alone last night Trunks, I was… hurt, really hurt." Her eyes drifted at the memory and she unconsciously wrapped her arms around herself. "…and angry."

Trunks tensed up. She looked dishevelled, her clothes where a little dirty and her face was streaked and darker around the eyes, no doubt from what happened at the fairground but there was something else, something more off putting, she looked different, on edge and he couldn't imagine it being a good sign.

"But… right then, just when I thought nothing would save me, I sensed you." She said and looked at him straight in the eyes and took a step closer. "You were there."

Trunks stared back at her, still uneasy about the change in her eyes, a subtleness he couldn't quite place. 'She must have followed me back here.' He realised. 'But… that must mean she was here all night.' While he was lazily sleeping, lost in his own world, she was watching him. The magnitude of his mistake terrified him.

She looked down to the ground. "Last night something happened to me, something that's never happened before. I remembered things from my life before Dr. Gero kidnapped me." She looked back up to him, eyes full with the weight of what she'd experienced, but also edged in visceral desperation. "Why didn't you come to me?" She asked, her voice clipped.

Trunks swallowed and his eyes appraised her fearfully. For her to suddenly unload this information, it confirmed his suspicion that something else was going on. Was he right about her not being in control? But he couldn't dwell on that now; he had to think about more pressing matters, like the unstable killing machine standing not so far from him. He knew his life was on the line. He gathered himself as much as possible, desperate for the adrenalin in his body to fully rouse him from his morning lethargy.

"Yes I was there." He licked his dry lips, his mind raced for an angle, an attack, anything that could guide him out of this. "I looked around and waited for you, but you lied. You said you would bring the items you took but you had nothing." He said, deciding to press her. She was trying to lure him into a conversation, something normal people do but he wasn't having any of it.

Her temperament changed and she glared at him. "I never lied, I told you I would give them back if you showed up - you didn't!"

Trunks grit his teeth and clenched his fist. "Well what do you expect when all you ever do is kill and destroy!?" How could he stand here and engage in conversation with the one who killed Gohan, killed his father and countless people on earth? She was the instigator of his nightmares, the one behind so much misery on earth. He had enough of being played, he didn't want to be made to think she was different, it enraged him! He positioned himself into a fighting stance.

"As if I would trust an android, a murderer who gets kicks out of killing people!" He spat.

Eighteen's glare fell and she stared at him flatly. After a moments pause she reached into the pocket of her shirt and pulled out the drive core processor and held it up. Trunks' eyes widened, he knew what it was immediately.

"When I say I'm going to do something, I do it. See?" She revealed, holding it up. She didn't like being made to look bad, especially accused of it. But she also knew she had to do this to show him there was more to her despite what he thought.

He was stumped and angry and was so used to fighting desperately for his life that this weird and sudden change in her behaviour just kept knocking him off guard again and again. Was he right about her? Was she not fully in control of herself? He began to sweat as he tried to figure out what was going on, but these thoughts only annoyed him more every time he looked at her. She was a walking contradiction. He needed her to go back to simply being the big bad enemy, no questions, no ifs or buts. Simply the mindless android that he'd spent his entire life trying to destroy.

"If you had just done what I said I would have given it to you." She stated and then, with her eyes remaining on him, she put it back into her pocket as if making a point.

"Typical! Always demanding, always taking without any thought to others!" He said.

She stepped forward in anger and pointed to herself in defence. "I would have given you the damn thing if you had just done what I said! I would have given you the others too but you're so damn stubborn and won't even talk!"

Trunks got angry, the way she spoke, her manner and sudden flourish of expressions that he'd never seen before. It was too much, she was challenging his perception of her and he'd had enough. She was an android, the same damn android that had terrorised this world and that was that!

"I've had enough of this! What the hell do you want android!?" He yelled.

Eighteen stopped and dropped her arms to her side. She took a step closer to him, her gaze fixed to his eyes, direct and unmoving…

"You." She said simply.

Trunks looked at her, the way she said it, his face turned red. 'She's serious, she's actually freaking serious!' The way she looked at him, the memory of their kiss flashed across his mind and he felt his heart thump in his chest as astonishment slowly took place of his anger.

She stepped closer, only a few feet away from him. "For a while now I couldn't stop thinking of you, and then when I met you by that factory you did something to me, it changed something inside and ever since it's been growing. Last night I… I even remembered my name." She said looking at him.

Trunks stared at her, his mind racing at every word. '…she was kidnapped?' He wondered, getting pulled in. "Your… name…?" He asked despite himself.

She smiled. "Lazuli."

Trunks watched her, the way she said it, her eyes marvelled still afresh with the memory that it drew her entire face into a smile. It was the kind of smile he never thought she was capable of. 'Lazuli? So it's true, this is why she's been acting different.' His mind raced at the thought, but he had to think, he had to do something, he couldn't let her do this to him. Not again!

She stood right up against him and peered into his eyes, the warmth that she'd felt before rose up inside of her again and she marvelled at what was happening. She needed him more than anything. She was about to reach up and kiss him before…

"No…" He said slowly shaking his head. "This isn't happening again." He said and jumped away to the side and leaped over camp fire away from her. Eighteen turned toward him.

"You think that kiss meant something? Well it didn't." He said, poised and defensive.

"Yes it did, I know it did." She said absolute and then grinned. "I also know you felt it to."

Trunks gulped but shook his head determined not to let her have her way. "You don't know anything. Besides, monsters just don't do it for me." He was adamant about widening the gap between them and shook his head at the thought of her getting her way.

"I've been so foolish, being led along in this game of yours." He said, looking her straight in the eye. "I won't play along anymore, it ends now." He threw the challenge down and powered up to super saiyan, his face taking on a fierce snarl.

Eighteen watched him in contemplation. She wasn't used to being rejected, normally because she never put herself in a place to be rejected. After a moment she shook her own head and shrugged, she figured it would come to this.

"You are so selfish…" She commented and looked him straight on, her expression serious and once again, unhinged.

"Very well, if you insist on being this way then so be it, I'll just have to make you see things my way." She said, eyes cool and focussed with her hair falling across her face. Suddenly looking more like the Android 18 Trunks was used to.

Trunks braced himself. 'This is it, this is how it should be.' He told himself, he was tired of having his emotions played with by her. It was easier this way, she was the enemy and that was that.

He prepared himself for the fight but suddenly realised he didn't have his sword. His eyes flashed to it resting against the log, the log that was right beside her.

She followed his eyes to the sword beside her and then back to him and let out a smirk. "You want this?" She said and picked it up, appraising it, although it honestly didn't interest her. It was just a boy's toy as far as she was concerned, although she did wonder if she could have some fun with him…

She threw off the scabbard and held it up effortlessly causing Trunks to take a large step back. His clear fear made her laugh and she took a step closer to him. She did enjoy this, she couldn't help it. "Is this how you do it?" She said and thrust it from side to side like she'd seen him do before in previous fights. He wearily moved back. "Well?" She said waiting for him to comment. Trunks merely snarled at her and settled back into a defensive stance.

She looked at him and lowered her arms to her side, annoyed that he wasn't playing. "This is no fun." She said and tossed the blade to the side like a twig, it spun in the air and the heavy blade pierced the ground with its handle up.

"Let's have some real fun." She said, her voice seductive and sultry as she stepped toward him. He stepped back with every advance she made but made sure he was moving in a specific direction. Just before she got too close he dummied a move to the left but spun to the right and jumped toward his sword. Eighteen however was right behind him. He grasped it and with all of his strength jumped off the ground and blasted off, intent on making space between them, however she was right there with a grin and grabbed his ankle. He looked down. 'Oh no.'

"Going somewhere?" She said with a laugh before throwing him down to the earth, sending the sword flying out of his hand.

Angered he immediately spun around and threw a barrage of energy blasts toward her, intent on creating a surprise screen of energy as he followed closely behind and physically threw himself at her in full attack. Eighteen swiped away the blasts and glided effortlessly between his punches and kicks, all the while watching him with a playful smile.

"Ooh you're getting better." She sang with a giggle.

This made him even angrier and his attacks got faster, pushing himself more and more. She had to block a few attacks now and he had started pushing her backward. Before they reached the forest treeline Trunks made a move; he twisted to her side and sent a kick to her waist which she swiftly glided away from, before flipping over her and sending a barrage of high energy down at almost point blank range. She blocked easily but the blast explosion had burned the edges of her clothes and charred the white jeans she was wearing. However more significantly it had torn the arm of his jacket she was wearing.

As he spun away Trunks saw her shocked face and thought the attack had hit her. He smiled and felt elated as he watched her - any little victory was huge for his fighting confidence, however his smile faded quickly as she immediately glared at him and almost instantly, with inconceivable speed, appeared beside him, and just as he realised and turned toward her she backhanded him across the face, sending him flying down into a crater of dirt on the cliff edge.

"Hey look what you did! I liked this jacket!" She said holding the ripped arm angrily. Trunks was lying in a heap and bleeding from the mouth. He coughed and spat out blood as he picked himself up wearily. That was a hard blow, not just physically, but to his confidence in this fight. He knew he was outmatched, she was playing with him, and that move was a simple reminder of where he stood against her. Regardless of what she wanted with him, he needed to get away. He was on borrowed time and he had to think of something fast otherwise he wouldn't be returning home whether he was dead or… well, right now he didn't want to think about what she had planned for them. He shakily took to his feet and watched her poke at his jacket, completely pre-occupied with the tear on the arm, and completely unaffected by the intense fight they'd just had while he was in quite a deal of pain and exhaustion. He did however feel a slight sense of accomplishment, she was pissed and although his face hurt like hell, he was glad he got to her in some way.

"You know I'm going to have to stitch this up now." She complained while prodding the torn threads to see how damaged it was.

"That's my jacket, I never said you could have it." He said, wiping the blood from his mouth and chin.

She looked at him standing wearily in the small crater looking up at her. There was a look of pride on his bruised face, clearly feeling pleased with himself that he'd made her angry. She was tempted to react angrily but decided to change tack.

Trunks braced himself expecting an angry response but braced as he saw the anger on her face turn once again to that same unnerving seductive smile. "Yes it's yours, but like everything that's yours it belongs to me now - including you!" She said and stepped forward.

Trunks stepped back caught off-guard by her sudden change. He quickly gathered his composure and straightened up. "Too bad, I'm not interested."

"Who said you had a choice?" She said, now only a few feet away from him.

"My choice is I'm going to destroy you." He said, venom in his voice.

She stopped, her confident smile faded and she stared at him. "I see you've still got that nasty mouth of yours even after all the lessons I gave you over the years." She grinned and put her hands on her hips. "I'd rather not do this Trunks but it looks like I'm going to have to fix that little problem with one more lesson." She took the jacket off and lowered her bare arms and leaned forward as if ready to charge him.

"Pay attention!" She yelled.

He jumped back and steadied himself. 'Get ready Trunks, time it right.' He told himself, he had been biding his time. They were in the mountains, if he could gain sufficient distance from her, he could use the trees and mountain valleys as a means to hide and escape. He was going to blast the ground, throw a dust and dirt screen up at her to create a distraction, it was his best chance. He braced as her foot left the ground, his fingers tingling ready to unleash a blast to the ground. He held his breath.

To his surprised she didn't move to his front but swiftly moved to the side around him at lightning speed. He staggered and spun trying to follow her but she was simply too fast.

"Boo!" She said directly behind him and put her arms around his shoulders. Trunks shook from surprise and instinctively tried to swivel and use the ground as a foot boost to launch away from her, but she stopped him. He wriggled and immediately threw an elbow up toward her; she pulled back and blocked with ease and with the very same move sent a heavy blow to his chest, knocking the wind out of him and smashing him into the earth for the second time, creating a long trail of dirt right through the campsite.

She quickly followed at stopped at the top of the crater. "Why are you being so selfish? All I want to do is talk with you, we don't need to fight!" She yelled down at him.

Trunks was in a heap on the ground gasping for air. The heaviness of the blow sent paralysing pain throughout his entire body, his hoodie was torn and in pieces and his body felt paralysed in pain. He lurched forward and steadied himself on his hands and gasped for air as she slowly made her way behind him.

"I'm asking you to listen to me. I don't want to hurt you." She pleaded down to him.

He struggled to turn and could barely look up at her as he slowly began to feel his body respond in the way it should, despite the incredible pain. He tried his best not to seem too hurt by the powerful blow but he was struggling, her speed, she had completely caught him by surprise with that blow. He coughed up blood and spat it out and then, with great effort and a defiant glare looked up at her.

"What? Is… is that the best you got?" He said with forced steadiness.

Her desperate face fell to frustration and then anger. "Don't make me do this Trunks." She said, gritting her teeth, feeling a familiar cold anger rise up and whisper inside her, begging her to give in to it. Afterall she could swat him like a bug, imagine the fun it would be! She squeezed her fist and shook her head. "Stop this. Please don't do this." She pleaded.

Trunks slowly and shakily took to his feet. "There is nothing else to do! You're nothing but a killing machine and I'll never see you as anything else so stop trying to talk to me!" He yelled through the pain, finding his voice more clearly, every second that passed he felt himself regaining some of the strength he'd lost from the blow. The numb tingling in his limbs had subsided at least.

She looked at him, a clear hurt cast across her pale features. For a moment Trunks thought she would burst into tears but just before it happened, her face fell and she stared down at the ground and shook her head. "Why… why won't you listen… I can't…" Eighteen grabbed her head and crouched down; the cold hard and clinical programming began to rise up, intent on overwhelming and smothering her. It wanted to fill the weakness and empty spaces in her will like a creeping darkness from the bottom of some deep well, it rose up and ate away at all the memories and emotions she had been battling to hold onto since last night. She had left his camp just as he had entered the capsule shelter. She needed time to think, her memories were overwhelming. She wandered the woods in the dark at a loss for what was happening. Her programming which seemed like it was made to remove any and all emotions that weren't useful in some way to her destruction of human beings was struggling to dominate her. But like a door being unlocked, the memories of her past and the endless emotions that had been suppressed deep inside came rushing through, unstoppable and it helped her suppress the programming. The difficulty was in dealing with the new emotions which wasn't so easy. That needed time and someone to lean on, someone to love.

She looked at him, tears welling up in her eyes, desperate not to fall back into the black pit. His actions and words made it harder for her to resist. It was goading her, begging her to give in and walk its dark, destructive and lifeless path once again like a cold, dark blanket.

"Y-you don't understand… I'm not… this isn't truly me… I… need help." She tried to find the words but couldn't. She knew somewhere deep inside that her actions had caused him suffering but it was too soon, how could she deal with all of this right now. Was it her problem? Was she being selfish? She shook her head desperately.

Trunks was watching her with wide-eyes, but what she had said had made him angry. "How dare you… how dare you ask for help! How many people cried out for help after watching their loved ones die by your hands? How many pleaded, begged for your mercy only to be laughed at and murdered!"

Eighteen looked up at him and shook her head at his words. The emotions of her time since she was awoken by Dr. Gero had been suppressed, though she could remember most of her and Seventeens actions, the weight and meaning of everything she had done was only now beginning to catch up to her. She couldn't deal with it. She shook her head at the thought, she couldn't handle it right now, she'd only just remembered her own past. She clenched her eyes shut and screamed as the weight of emotions began flooding her mind. "S-stop… just stop, you don't know what you're doing!"

Trunks stumbled back away from her, shocked by what he was witnessing. He had watched her going through some inner torment last night, but this was harder, visceral and he didn't know what to make of it. He unconsciously hobbled back away as she wrestled some inner demons.

'I have to get him to listen to me. I need it, he has to.' She stood up, body shaking. Her eyes descended into a steely determination as she looked at him through the bangs of her now dishevelled and dusty blond hair.

"It seems I was wrong to think I could do this without fighting... without pain…" She said, her voice low and edgy.

She straightened up. "I'll just have to make you understand." She lunged forward and reached out to grab him but Trunks was anticipating it and burst upward in flight while at the same time sent a blast toward her. He flew to his sword and swiped it from the ground as he passed. Eighteen however was right behind him and very much on the attack. He twisted in the air just in time as she threw an energy blast at him and he managed to block it, but it slowed him down allowing her to throw herself into him. The sword however made it a little easier for him as it naturally put a greater distance between the two and gave his attacks more speed. However he was entirely on the defensive and she was relentless and was pushing him around and in total control of where they were heading.

'Damnit!' He was quickly losing control and his defence was a split second away from collapse. She was relentless and had a determination in her eyes he'd never seen before.

She pushed him into the treeline, each swing and push smashed trees from the ground, clearing a path in the forest. She backed Trunks into a rock and he was forced to take to the air, flipping over her with his sword aimed at her head, however she was simply too fast for him and was one step ahead, unbalancing him. She threw a well-timed kick to his sword arm causing him to yell out and almost drop the blade, and then sent a powerful blow to his other arm which he barely manage to deflect by angling his body, avoiding most of the force of the attack. Sensing he was about to be pummelled he desperately shot a quick point-blank energy blast at her and dived backward, and then with everything he had, blasted off toward the dense forest foliage barely maintaining his energy level.

Trunks' body burned in agony, after the blow he received earlier, he was quickly losing power. Merely trying to defend and block her attacks had almost completely drained him of strength and the sheer force of her blows on his limbs had numbed them, making it hard to control his movements. Just as he thought he could escape to the cliff edge below he felt a blast hit him square in the back and he yelled out in pain. A scorching pain shot through his whole body and combined with his own momentum, sent him crashing down against the rocks and trees in an explosion of energy and dirt.

Eighteen followed closely and hovered above the pile of dirt and rocks he was buried in. She noticed his sword sticking out from the side and picked it up, frowning with disdain at the thing. "You won't be needing this thing anymore." She said and then with a quick strike of her hand broke it and tossed it aside. She jumped down into the crater, still reeling from the internal battle going on inside her, wishing for him to just stop, terrified at the thought of him getting away or what damage she was doing to him. The sooner she ended it, the better.

The force of the blow brought Trunks out of super saiyan and he was barely conscious. He tried to open his eyes, but one remained closed, bloodied and swollen. Blood trickled down his face and he could feel a warm liquid trickling down his back and arms, he knew it was blood. He grabbed at the dirt on the ground, trying to pick himself up, but an incredible pain shot through his left leg as he put weight on it. He winced and looked down at it, he wasn't sure but it felt broken. He coughed up blood and looked to the side and as the dust parted he could see her there looking down at him, her face angry and desperate.

'Well Trunks, this is it.' He realised. His strength was gone, he was completely vulnerable, and he knew she could kill him on a whim whenever she wanted. He glared up at her through one eye. He could see her lips moving, talking, but he couldn't hear anything, just a high pitched ringing noise filled his ears. She came up beside him and bent down and then held his dirt covered and bloody face in her hand, moving it from side to side, appraising the damage he had taken.

She had tried to reason with him, gave him every opportunity to be civil but he just plain refused. While it angered her and she was tempted to unleash her fury on him, she didn't want to create even more hostility and difficulty between them, but at the same time she couldn't let him go. She just couldn't.

"That's enough Trunks, it's over. I'm taking you with me." She said. He heard only the end of it, the sound slowly coming back as if from a great distance. He frowned and glared back at her and tried his best to back away from her. She brushed the hair from her dirty face and watched him still trying to get away from her. She frowned in frustration and placed her hands on her hips.

"If you had only listened to me none of this would have happened. We can both get what we want." She said raising her arms in gesture to her flawless logic, not able to figure him out. "Was this really worth it? Are those items that important?" She asked but didn't expect him to reply the way he was. But it was true, she didn't know what he was doing with them, he clearly really wanted them for something but at the same time, he wasn't prepared to engage with her. She needed something, some leverage that would at least calm him down enough to be civil.

Trunks was about to say something, he stumbled to the wall and picked himself up, leaning against it, but then stopped. A sound, something was ringing, only this time it wasn't his damaged ears, it was coming from the camp. His face sank, it was his phone, his mother must be checking on him.

Eighteen looked toward the direction of the sound and then back at Trunks and finally pieced it together. Her face brightened and seeing him in no state to run away, she skipped up the crater edge to the hill and disappeared from his sight toward the camp.

Horror filled his battered face and panic helped pump adrenalin through his body. From the depths of his being he found enough strength to stumble up the crater and peered over at her flying toward the camp where his phone was ringing.

Eighteen took his belt and pulled out the small flip-phone and read the text on screen. "Mother." She spoke aloud and her thoughts raced. 'Was this why he was so uncooperative, was he collecting the items for this mother?' She wondered. Perhaps this was what she needed, if she could somehow use his mother to make him listen...

With a new found hope she flicked it open and brought it to her ear. "Hello~"

"Hey Trun…" Bulma stopped, not recognising the strange voice. "Who is this?" She asked.

Eighteen smiled and fixed her hair. "Oh let's just say I'm eighteen, pretty and the most powerful beauty on the planet." She smiled.

There was a brief silence before Bulma pieced it together. "No. NO! Where's Trunks!? Where's my boy? What the hell have you done to my son you bitch!" Bulma screeched through the phone in full rage and panic. Eighteen flinched and moved the irritating sound away from her highly tuned and sensitive ears. Her reaction was completely unexpected, normally whenever she introduced herself to a human they reacted in fear which was her intent, it made them easier to control, but this... she was enraged and her eyes widened dangerously.

Trunks could hear her as he hobbled closer. He shouted through his sore throat, hoping his mother could hear him. "D-don't listen to her! I'm fine!" He breathed, trying to stagger over to Eighteen as quickly as possible.

A now angry Eighteen glared at the phone. "Listen to me you hag, you will never see your son again, do you hear me? He's decided to come and live with me now." She grinned down the phone but pulled it away again as Bulma sent a tirade back through the other end. Eighteen glared at the phone as she held it a safe distance away from her, and then looked at the staggering Trunks approaching her. "Now I know where you got that nasty mouth of yours."

Trunks desperately tried to grab the phone from Eighteen but she easily moved it away and grabbed his arm. Trunks could hear his mother's cries through the phone. "Mom I'm OK! Don't worry, please!" He shouted making sure he was clear. Eighteen spun him around and twisted his arm up behind his back, his face distorted in pain and he cried out. She put the phone close to him.

Bulma could hear his screams. "Oh no, oh no. Trunks I'm coming, I'm almost there please hang on…" Tears filled her eyes as she stepped on the gas of the flying car, desperately peering out of the window down to the valley below. She was having trouble finding exactly where he was but now she was desperate and moving quicker.

Eighteen slowly took the phone from his mouth to her ear. "Did you hear that? I hope it makes you happy because it was your fault! Consider it the last time you hear your son!" Eighteen shouted down the phone and threw it toward a nearby rock, smashing it to pieces.

She breathed, she didn't plan for that outcome but the old hag had been so rude that she just had to end it. "That's enough of that headache. Now shall we-…" She was cut-off as Trunks threw himself into the air and blasted off the floor infront of her, covering her in cloud of dirt and dust. He then flew off the cliff edge and dropped down toward the forest valley.

Eighteen stood coughing and wiping her eyes from the dust that filled them, after everything that just happened, his little manoeuvre caught her by surprise. She didn't think he had anything left in him. As the dust settled she straightened out and looked over herself and frowned. She was dirty, and she hated that more than anything.

"Oh you'll pay for that." She said, her voice low and hard. She was really frustrated; it should have been easy to simply take him away from this camp and deal with him when he was calm. A little bit of time together was all she needed to have him realise she wasn't going to hurt him, to see that things were different. She growled and burst into the air and took off over the cliff edge, her acute senses scanning the forest floor below, blue eyes piercing and looking for any kind of movement. After a brief moment she narrowed her eyes, she couldn't sense him and panic started to creep inside her. 'Why did this happen? It should have been so easy!' Her patience was waning and now she was worried, after she had been so kind to him how dare he do this to her!

She lowered herself just above the treetops, her desperate eyes darting from tree to tree, looking for anything, a sign, a rustle. She knew he went in this direction, his sudden power down and the condition he was in meant he couldn't have gone far... could he? Her instinct was to flush her prey out but she didn't want to harm him. 'Damnit when I find you…' She seethed, but then decided it was best to change approach. She had spent years luring her prey, humans out of their little hidey-holes while playing games with Seventeen, it was always best to change approach when it came to these situations.

"Trunks, I know you're down here. If you come out now I promise I'll forgive you for what you've just done to me." She said, letting her voice carry out across the valley. She waited patiently, but the only reply she got was the sound of the valley wind across the tree tops, birds tweeting and other general sounds of nature.

Her brow twitched. "Really we both know you can't escape, you're just delaying the inevitable. Come out now and I promise I won't hurt you." She said and quickly spun toward the sound of a stick breaking. She flew across and hovered above, eyes piercing down through the spaces in the foliage like a hawk.

"If you co-operate I know things can change between us. We don't have to fight, really, we can have a lot of fun together." She stopped above a small clearing and saw some bushes rustling. Her eyes locked on to it and she lowered herself silently toward it.

"Trunks… I-I'm sorry OK, I know I shouldn't have spoken to your mother like that. I'm just… I'm not feeling like myself. I need your help…" She pleaded.

Trunks was breathing heavily and blood was pouring down his face. That burst of energy he let out had really spent him; he had blanked out after clearing the cliff edge and plummeted to the ground where the impact coincidentally woke him back up. He'd managed to pull himself behind a tree and take cover in some bushes but he was struggling to stay conscious, his body was screaming in pain. Between the ringing in his ears, his rapid shallow breathing and thudding heartbeat he could hear her talking, pleading with him from above. He was tired, deathly so. It felt like the world was resting on his eyelids, begging him to give in to unconsciousness.

She stepped beside the bushes silently and saw it rustle again. Quickly she pulled the branches aside and suddenly something jumped out the opposite end, she spun to face it but it was a wild boar followed by two tiny piglets that followed their mother running off into the tall grass.

She shook and spun around in desperation. "Please Trunks, please… I promise I won't… I won't kill anymore. I know I've done things… terrible things, but it wasn't me. Please, I just need your help." She begged, her eyes welling up.

Trunks tiredly peered up between a space in the bushes from behind her. She looked around desperately, tears in her eyes. She grabbed her head and again appeared to be going through another inner battle. His battered and bruised head was resting weakly against the tree trunk as he watched her with his remaining good eye. He was tired, so tired and yet there she was, the object of his fear, the target of all his fighting effort in life was begging for his help amidst the trees merely a few metres away from him. The pain on her face, the desperation… maybe it was true, maybe Lazuli really is trying to break through. His head was beginning to drop and his bruised eyes close. 'Maybe we can… change things…' Unable to hold on any longer, he gave into the weight on his eyes and allowed his tiredness to take him.

Suddenly his eyes opened, there was a new sound in the forest, one that didn't belong here. It was the rumbling sound of an engine.

Bulma flew low over the treetops and caught sight of the small campsite, she was panicked and desperate. She lowered down at the small clearing and saw some of his belongings. 'This is it, this is it!' She realised as she identified a safe spot to land beside what looked like a ruined and damaged camp.

Eighteen looked up toward the car as it passed above the trees. 'Is that…?' She shot up above the treeline to see the car landing at the camp. She recognised the Capsule Corp symbol on the car, it was the same one from Trunks' jacket. Her eyes then fell onto the woman driving it, the resemblance was startling. 'That must be Trunks' mother.' She blinked as her mind rushed with the possibilities and then looked back down toward the trees below, her eyes desperate and calculating.

"Well Trunks, if you won't listen to reason, I'll just make you listen!" She yelled down below to the forest canopy and flew across toward Bulma.

Trunks caught a glimpse of his mother's car as it flew by directly above. He was horrified, he knew it was his mother, he recognised it immediately. 'O-oh no…' His mind raced and the weight of Eighteen's threat terrified him and panic pushed through his overwhelming tiredness. He immediately tried to summon the strength to stand using the tree as support. 'Mother!' His mind raced in fear and somehow he managed to hobble through the bushes, desperately trying to make for the cliff.

Bulma quickly gathered herself and fumbled with the latch of the glove box. She reached inside and pulled out a gun despite knowing it was useless however it was either that or nothing and nothing was unacceptable right now. Quickly she pressed the latch to open the glass domed car door but then froze in shock as she realised standing directly beside her was a dirt covered, face stricken, blond young woman whom at first she didn't recognise. She was about to speak but then something in the young woman's pale eyes sent a shiver down her spine and it dawned on her who the strange girl was. Bulma froze and couldn't pull her eyes away from the cold and dishevelled stare Eighteen was giving her. Without looking at her hands she fiddled with the gun while Eighteen merely watched. She clicked the safety switch on the side and lifted it up at her. "W-where's Trunks?" She said, clearly fearful but determined. Eighteen merely stared back at her, tiredness filling her dirty face. A moment of silence passed but Bulma began to get angry and she lifted her arms straighter, emphasising the gun pointing at her. "I said where the hell is my s-" With inconceivable speed the gun was snatched from her hand. Bulma jumped in surprise and watched as an expressionless Eighteen held it up infront of her and then proceeded to crush it in her hand. Bulma flinched back in her seat and watched the blonde young girl toss the gun to the side. "Stay there." Eighteen said and turned around.

Bulma looked at her, lost in shock for a moment but the shock quickly turned into a glare, much akin to her son. "If you've hurt my son I swear I'll destroy you!" She threatened. Eighteen remained quiet with her back toward her looking off toward the cliff edge.

Panic rising in Bulma she looked around the camp before deciding to take things into her own hands. "Trunks!" She yelled hoping he'd hear her. Eighteen winced at the piercing sound of Bulma's voice which was not so far from her ears. She turned around and glared at her, however Bulma wasn't looking.

"Trunks! If you can hear me, run away! Get away from here, forget about me!" She screamed, a flock of birds nestling in the trees nearby took off.

Eighteens glare turned to anger. "Be quiet!" She yelled at her. Bulma flinched as Eighteen approached and braced herself as she stood directly beside the car. Eighteen was in no mood, she grabbed the domed door and closed it and just before Bulma started to complain again she pushed down on the latch with impossible force, embedding it into the metal chassis of the flying dome car, effectively sealing Bulma inside.

Bulma's eyes widened and she immediately began struggling with the unbudging door. "Let me out! Where's Trunks!?" She screamed and kicked at the car dome, only now her voice was muffled and at an acceptable level. Eighteen turned away from her again and brought her attention back toward the cliff edge. She knew he would come.

Trunks used everything he had to crawl to the cliff and stared up at the steep incline. He heard his mother scream from above and it gave him the adrenalin he needed for one last push, he half jumped, half flew up and grabbed onto the side of the edge, "Aargh!" Grimacing with each pull he clawed at the rocky ground for leverage and tried to ignore the pain coursing through his body. He managed to reach the side and finally saw Eighteen standing infront of his mother's capsule car waiting for him, his mother was banging against the window, clearly trapped inside.

Relief came over Eighteen as she watched him emerge from the cliff, for a moment she thought he'd either escaped or died from the damage she'd dealt to him. For a moment they looked at each other, contrasting emotions until Trunks finally spoke out.

"Enough… you win…" He said, desperately pulling himself toward them. His battered face was grief stricken and his eyes welled in suppressed tears. "P-please… just don't… hurt her… I'll do anything you want." He struggled through breaths and tears as he got closer and closer.

Eighteen glared down at him, tears in her own eyes hearing him say that and seeing the desperation in him. "Why did you do this… it shouldn't have been this way. I didn't want this!" She yelled, the conflict, the pain he was in and now using his mother as bait. The rift between them had grown even greater. Seeing how utterly opposed he and his mother were to her, it was not what she wanted, she wanted to get closer, to open up and have him realise that she remembered what it was like before, that she had changed and had been changing. She just…

Her eyes welled up and she stepped forward. "I love you!" She screamed, her voice echoing through the valley as desperate tears fell down her cheeks. "I… need you."

Trunks stopped and looked at her taken aback. Bulma too stopped banging on the window and looked at her, completely stunned.

"I remember… everything, everything I once was… and also, everything I've done since…" She said, battling through tears, pleading for him to understand. "You're the reason I was able to break through my programming." She stepped closer as he struggled to his feet. "You're the reason I remember who I was. I can stop now, I'm in control."

Trunks swayed in place, barely standing. "...let her go, please." He begged, his voice barely a whisper.

Eighteen desperately looked between him and his mother before shaking her head. "No, because you'll leave!"

Trunks stood infront of her and reached out toward her shoulder, taking it and staring her directly in the eyes. "If… y-you truly loved me, you'd understand why I can't be with you. I came… I came to find something that would make this destroyed world a better place for everyone, not just us." He said. "I-if… you truly love me, you'll let us go…" He said through breaths, staring her in the eyes.

Eighteen's eyes welled up as she stared back at him, she was caught between two worlds, an old dark world full of death, destruction and numbness and a new one filled with hope, love and life. She desperately looked between him and his mother who was watching eyes-wide from inside the car. After a brief desperate moment, her face dropped and she buried herself into his chest and cried. Her shoulders shook and he brought his arm up and embraced her genuinely. After a few moments she then slowly put her hand into her pocket and took out the processor. She looked at it and then up at him, his face battered and bruised and impossibly tired, and then she placed it into his larger, calloused hand.

Trunks looked down at his hand, and back at her before she suddenly held him tight and pulled him into a passionate kiss. His eyes widened in surprise before finally giving in. He closed his eyes and accepted the moment which felt like time and reality had separated. He was no longer in a destroyed and desperate world but instead sharing something special with a girl he only now realised he barely knew.

Eventually she pulled out of the kiss, having gotten what she wanted, the connection that she knew was there, and slowly moved her lips to his ear.

"I really do love you Trunks." She whispered and looked him in the eyes.

Trunks stared at her astonished, his cheeks glowing red as she smiled at him and then stood to the side and pulled open the car door. Trunks looked from her to his mother who had seen everything and was staring with her hands over her mouth, astonished at what had transpired.

He climbed inside with Bulmas help and Eighteen stepped closer and took his hand.

"Will you meet with me someday?" She asked.

He looked at her standing as if she were any normal pretty girl, her eyes were tear stricken and, as if for the first time seeing it, also incredibly alive. He smiled. "One day, when the world is different and when people can freely build their lives, there will be a place for you Lazuli. There will be a place for us." He said and squeezed her hand before letting it go with a smile. Lazuli smiled back, tears falling from her face and then reached up and closed the door and took a step back, her eyes never moving from his. The car lifted up and rose over the valley above before disappearing in the distance leaving Lazuli standing alone.

.

.

.

.

The end.

.

* * *

.

.

Well there it is!

My intent for this short story was to focus on the specifics of Eighteens programming and the reason behind her contrasting present and future self. I wanted to explore why and I needed a reason, a catalyst to "kick" her out of the programming and into what I perceive as being the real Eighteen. So the idea that love was what she needed to put her on the path to discovering her real self was fitting in my opinion given that in the main DBZ timeline she is loving and motherly.

However I also feel that simply turning them into lovers would have been so unrealistic and it would have betrayed Trunks' character. I mean honestly, how could Trunks just suddenly open up to her after all that she's done? Even if he did feel some romantic inclination toward her which is what I tried to convey, it just wouldn't make sense with him going through with it after all the horrors she's wrought upon the world and to him personally. So to end on a note of hope that something may develop one day in the future, I think that is the better and more realistic conclusion personally. But that's just me, let me know your thoughts on the matter.

Anyway I hope you enjoyed it, it was genuinely fun to write and thanks for all your support and reviews. I currently have a lot of things going on in life so I can't afford to write a continuous story at the moment. Saying that however I do feel there's a lot more to tell and I've left the story open enough that if I get some spare time there's a sequel to be written.

Thanks for all your support guys. I really appreciate the constructive and encouraging comments (and thanks to the guy reminding me how awesome Jesus is! xD.)

Cheers!

Keshin


End file.
